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UserShadow7989
2010-06-02, 04:44 PM
I've always been fascinated with lycanthropes and the like. Humans taking on animalistic forms (willingly or otherwise) is a common theme in the mythology of cultures all around the world. As my favorite animal is the fox, it's little surprise I was drawn to Kitsunes. They're particular in that the animal form was the 'true' form, and the idea of playing a race like that appeals to me.

While searching through the forum and looking at the builds provided, they always struck me as too vanilla. Many were just humanoids with Fox traits, and often carried only one or two of the Kitsune's hallmark abilities, if any at all. A few addressed their shape shifting, their true form as foxes, and/or their many tails being signs of age and experience, but missed others. They weren't bad, but I couldn't find one that thoroughly appeased me.

Kitsunes

Kitsunes are tiny, fox-like creatures that can assume a humanoid form. They sprout additional tails over time, and no matter what their form they cannot remove or change their fox-like tails or ears. Kitsunes are commonly portrayed as tricksters close to both magic and nature. However, they are shown in a positive light just as often as negative, often as faithful guardians, friends, lovers, and wives. Being more nature spirits than animals like they originally were, they are loosely linked to the elements of the world, providing them with a nearly endless natural lifespan.

Personality: Younger Kitsunes love two things; playing pranks and discovering new things. Most travel as nomads to seek out new experiences and targets for their deceptions, though a handful travel solely to keep ahead of the enemies they've made. More of their tricks come from boredom than malicious intent, though the latter is a reason not to draw their ire.

Despite their love of new things, Kitsunes are slow to change. Perhaps it's a result of their impossibly long lifespans, but they cling to whatever they like, rarely seeing any need to give it up or go to the next thing right away, or to do today what they can tomorrow. This ironically makes them one of the most steadfast races out there.

Kitsunes on a whole loathe being told what to do or restrictions on their actions, many simply wanting to do what they want when they want. It's not hard to understand that they have difficulty respecting authority without the threat of severe repercussions to hold them in line. The few times a Kitsune settles down, they will choose a place with little authority or whose laws line up perfectly with their own preferences.

As loose cannon as they are, they do have a small amount of respect for the well traveled or dedicated. To see someone with such a comparatively short lifetime stick to one thing instead of changing constantly and quickly is confusing, but admirable.

Younger Kitsunes revel in their freedom, searching for something to practice and playing pranks at every opportunities. Older Kitsunes are more laid back, using their powers to garner respect instead of causing misfortune and slowly becoming set in their ways. Regardless of their age or origin, when a Kitsune finds someone or something they like, they pursue/protect it passionately.

Physical Description: While they prefer to assume the shape of a humanoid race, a Kitsune's true form is that of an average fox. Four legs, a large, bushy tail, and a body shape comparable to a small dog's. As they grow, both physically and metaphorically, they grow more tails up to a maximum of 9. Those with a high number of tails are highly respected amongst their own kind as beings who have seen and done much.

Most commonly, a Kitsune will transform into the shape of a human (or whatever race is most common in the area) when they travel. It lets them better examine the local culture, and grants them the benefits of thumbs and the ability to carry objects. However, even the most powerful transformation magic has difficulty removing a Kitsune's tails or ears. They can stuff them under hats and loose cloaks or use a spell to turn them invisible (along with the rest of themselves), but must constantly concentrate to keep their tails and hears hidden. If the tails or ears are cut off or otherwise removed, they will regrow over the course of a week.

Alignment: Kitsunes have no preference along the good/evil axis, running the gambit from cunning manipulators who abuse their abilities to cause trouble, to respectable if haughty beings who punish the wicked, and everything in between. However, they lean heavily towards chaos, with lawful Kitsune being all but unheard of. The few Kitsunes that are lawful are such through a personal code, rather than a respect for authority or self control, and are still more than happy to twist the wording of any promise or rule to their benefit.

Kitsune Lands: Kitsunes don't have any claimed lands or notable civilizations, due to their tendency to wander in search of interesting individuals and potential targets. The small tribes that appear tend to have a mish-mash of random traits that change constantly as they find something else of interest. The only common theme is a caste system in some shape or form, usually based off the number of tails one has (higher number meaning higher caste).

Religion: There's no preferred religion among Kitsunes, but they may take interest if they choose a religious figure as their disguise. For those that do adopt a religion, nature, trickster, and magical deities are most common.

Language: Kitsunes speak Common and one other language.


///PC Kitsune\\\

+2 Dexterity, +2 Charisma, -2 Strength, -2 Constitution. Kitsunes are compulsive pranksters and their spellcasters favor illusions and enchantments. They are quick and graceful on their feet, but they lack the strength and physical stamina of larger races.
Small: As Small creatures, a kitsune gains a +1 size bonus to Armor Class, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +4 size bonus on Hide checks, but she uses smaller weapons than humans use, and her lifting and carrying limits are three-quarters of those of a Medium character.
Magical Beast (Shapechanger): As magical beasts, kitsunes are immune to spells and effects that specifically target humanoids. They have the shapechanger subtype as a result of their constant transformations.
Speed: Kitsune base land speed is 30 feet.
Multiple Tails: A kitsune gains more tails as she grows physically, mentally, and/or spiritually. At levels 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 17, and 20, she sprouts an additional tail (a total of nine, counting the one they're born with). The kitsune receives a racial bonus to diplomacy and bluff checks towards kitsunes with less tails, +1 for every tail more then the other. If a tail is removed in any way, another will grow in it's place in a week.
Animal Shape: A kitsune cannot speak in their true form, nor can they perform the subtle motions of the hands that humanoids can. They're a regular fox outside of their magic, and cannot cast spells that require verbal or somatic components or use weapons/armor. Their grace in this form grants them an additional +2 racial Dexterity bonus, but their feeble shape also adds another -2 racial Strength penalty. The racial stat bonus and penalty from this ability are added to those listed above. While in their true form, Kitsunes can perform a 1d4+STR modifier Bite as a Natural Attack.
Transformation: All kitsunes are capable of transforming into another race's shape. As a full-round action that provokes an attack of opportunity, the Kitsune can disguise itself as a member of a medium size or smaller humanoid race. Doing so, they are no longer effected by the Animal Shape racial ability (see above). The kitsune does not gain the racial abilities of the race she imitates or lose her normal racial bonuses/abilities, and is still treated as small sized even when she takes a different sized appearance. She reverts back to her animal shape when entering a anti-magic field, effected by anything that negates supernatural abilities, or rendered unconscious. Trueseeing and divination spells or abilities will reveal her true appearance, though it won't return her to her true form. Kitsunes can change back to their normal state as an instant action.
Flawed Disguise: A kitsune can disguise herself as any humanoid race (see Transformation) without any penalties for imitating a different gender, race, or age category. However, a kitsune has difficulty hiding her ears and tails, and must make a concentration check to keep them hidden when under scrutiny (DC 10 + (1 for each of the investigating creature's hitdice/2)) every (hitdie) hours. Failing the concentration check grants a +4 untyped bonus to a Spot checks made against her Disguise check. If the creature suspicious of the kitsune or searching for and aware of a kitsune's abilities to change shape (DC 15 Knowledge (Nature) check or previous experience with a kitsune), increase the DC of the concentration check by +5. When interacting with people who have interacted with the kitsune before (even in disguise), the Kitsune must make a (DC 15 + (1 for each of the investigating creature's hitdice/2)) every hour. If she fails, those who have known her for an hour or more gain a +2 untyped bonus to Spot checks made against her Disguise check or to recognize the specific kitsune, while those that know the kitsune on a personal level gain a +6 bonus instead.
Ageless: Unlike most creatures, a Kitsune's essence is linked to the world itself, drawing from it. As a result, a Kitsune's 'natural' lifespan is beyond that of many mortals, possibly even being as eternal as long as the world is. While they are still killed just as easily as the next mortal, a Kitsune does not die of old age, nor do they have age categories. Their adulthood is reached at 100 years, and the only thing that changes in their aging is how many tails they have (see Multiple Tails ability).
Low-Light Vision: A Kitsune can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. She retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
Spell-like Abilities: Kitsune can use dancing lights and ghost sound as spell-like abilities, each a number of times per day equal to the number of tails she has. Caster level equal to her Hit Dice.
Disguise is always treated as a class skill for the Kitsune.
A Kitsune can take levels of the Shadowcraft Mage prestige class, despite not being a Gnome.
Kitsunes may communicate with other Kitsune and foxes in any form as if under the effects of Speak With Animals.
Automatic Languages: Common and one other.
Bonus Languages: Any (other than secret languages, such as Druidic).
Favored Class: Wu-Jen. A multiclass kitsune's wu-jen class does not count when determining whether she suffers an XP penalty for multiclassing. (If you don't have access to the Wu-Jen class, you may treat the Druid as the Favored Class of the Kitsune instead.)


///Kitsune Racial Feats\\\

Arcane Familiarity [Kitsune]
Requirements: Int 11+, 4 ranks of Knowledge (Arcana)

Benefit: Your partially magical nature protects you from the effects of spells. You gain a +1 racial bonus on saving throws against spells and spell-like effects, and an additional +1 racial bonus for every 4 ranks of Knowledge (Arcana) you have after the required four, to a maximum of +5 from 20 skill ranks.

Normal: The Kitsune receives no racial bonuses on saving throws against spells or spell-like effects.

Improved Transformation [Kitsune]
Requirements: Cha 15+, 3 ranks in Disguise.

Benefit: When disguised as a humanoid creature with your Transformation racial ability, you can trade your physical racial bonuses/penalties for any physical racial bonuses/penalties that race normally receives. You do not receive or lose any other racial traits while in this shape. If your level increases, you use your normal ability scores when determining if you meet the requirements to learn a feat or ability.

Normal: Kitsunes do not change their racial ability modifiers when using their Transformation racial ability.

Natural Illusionist [Kitsune]
Requirements: Cha 13+, 3 ranks of Knowledge (Arcana)

Benefit: Your powers of deception are magical in the most literal sense of the word. When you take this feat, select 1 spell from the Bard or Sorcerer/Wizard spell list with the [Illusion] descriptor and of a spell level equal to or less then the number of tails you have (if it is available on multiple spell lists, use the highest listed).

You gain that spell as a Spell-like Ability, usable a number of times per day equal to (Number of Tails - Spell's Level (if it is available on multiple spell lists, use the highest listed)) + 1 (Maximum 3). Caster level for the Spell-like Abilities provided this way is equal to your Hit Dice.

Special:This feat may be taken multiple times. If you wish to select this feat more then once, the required Cha score is increased by 2 and the number of ranks in Knowledge (Arcana) by 3 for each time you've taken this feat. You cannot select the same spell twice for the effects of this feat.

Playful Trickster [Kitsune]
Requirements: Int 11+, Cha 13+, 5 ranks in at least two: Bluff, Disguise, Diplomacy, Forgery, and/or Sense Motive.

Benefit: As a Kitsune, deception is part of your nature. You gain a +1 to all Bluff, Disguise, Diplomacy, Forgery, and Sense Motive checks for every 5 ranks in the appropriate skill you have.

Normal: The Kitsune is no more adept at trickery then any other race.

Spirit Fire [Kitsune]
Requirements: Int 13+, Cha 11+, either 4 ranks of Knowledge (Arcana) or 4th level.

Benefit: You can now create actual, harmful foxfire as opposed to the mere image of fire by focusing it through your hands/tails. You may cast burning hands as a Spell-like Ability by sacrificing one of your per day uses of dancing lights, with your caster level equal to your level. When using the burning hands spell-like ability, you may choose to deal electricity damage instead of fire (the fire descriptor is replaced with the electricity descriptor if you choose to deal electricity damage).

Normal: A Kitsune can only create small balls of light with their fox fire (see dancing lights in the list of Spell-like Abilities above) and cannot use them to harm anyone.

Special: You can take this feat multiple times. Every time you take this feat after the first, you gain an additional daily use of your dancing lights or burning hands Spell-like Abilities.


///Epic Racial Feats\\\

Curse of the Nine Tails
Requirements:Cha 16+, Level 21 or higher

Benefit:Your spiritual power allows you to inflict a curse on those who slight you. You gain bestow curse as a Spell-like Ability, usable nine times per day. The DC for saves against castings of bestow curse provided by this ability is 18 + Cha Modifier, instead of the normal DC.

Normal:You do not have the ability to bestow a curse upon someone unless you have learned the spell by taking levels of a spellcasting class.




Change Log:
6/07/10: Added a paragraph to the intro describing what I feel differs my version of the Kitsune from others as recommended by DracoDei. Modified Arcane Familiarity and Playful Trickster as per suggestions from Jiriku, hopefully dropping Arcane Familiarity's power as suggested by Milskidasith. Minor fluff rewrites.

6/08/10: Switched the racial dexterity bonus for a racial wisdom bonus. Dropped the racial bonuses to spot/listen/search. Reduced the always-class skills to just Disguise. Changed the Kitsune's size to Small, and it's type to Magical Beast. Changed automatic languages to Common and one more. Clarified that you do not lose your racial bonuses/abilities when using Transformation (except for the additional bonuses/restrictions from Animal Shape), and that Animal Shape's bonuses/penalties is added to the normal racial bonuses/penalties. Dropped the awkward last sentence at the end of Flawed Disguise. Switched Darkvision for Low-Light Vision. Gave the Kitsune dancing lights (to represent fox fire), silent image (illusions), and charm person (the enchanter/seductress take) Spell-like Abilities once per day. Arcane Familiarity now requires Int instead of Cha. All of these were made on the suggestions/criticisms of erikun, except changing type to magical beast which was Owrtho's.

Added the Spirit Fire racial feat to better represent the ability to create fire and lightning, since I wasn't comfortable giving it a 3rd level spell as a Spell-like Ability by default. Added Improved Illusionist to give the Kitsune better illusions.

Modified Flawed Disguise for flavor, changed the Wisdom bonus provided from Animal Shape to a Dexterity bonus, changed the caster level for the Spell-like abilities to reflect the number of tails instead of class levels, changed all mentions of class level to just level, and modified Improved Transformation to only affect physical ability scores, as per Owrtho's suggestions.

Changed the Wis Bonus back to a Dex Bonus, dropped all Spell-like abilities but dancing lights and changed number of uses per day to equal number of tails, using Hit Dice to determine caster lever instead of an awkward number of tails formula. Modified the racial feats involving Spell-like abilities to reflect this. All racial feats with a Wis requirement now have an Int requirement instead. Made the "Curse of the Nine Tails" epic feat. Kitsune can now take levels in Shadowcraft Mage despite not being a Gnome. These were made based on erikun's suggestions. Changed "Curse of the Nine Tails" to once per encounter after DracoDei noted it as too weak for once per day. Created the Natural Illusionist feat. Changed "Curse of the Nine Tails" again to nine times per day, and dropped the DC by 2.

6/10/10: Spell-like Abilities learned via Natural Illusionist are usable a maximum of 3 times per day, even if the number of tails you have would allow more uses then that.

6/13/10: Modified fluff to present Kitsunes as outsiders looking in instead of melding into a culture seamlessly. Gave them the Shapechanger sub-type. Gave them the ability to communicate with other Kitsune and foxes as if with the Speak With Animals ability at any time. Transforming into a different Humanoid form now requires a Concentration check when in combat, to reduce potential abuse by changing size mid combat. Kitsunes now pick one humanoid race at creation to transform into, and can gain the original benefits of the Transform/Flawed Disguise abilities as a racial feat. These were based on the advise of Leaf Eater. Gave Kitsunes a weak Bite Natural Attack in their true form, as suggested by erikun.

6/14/10: Transformation now grants only one form among the race you choose (I.E. you can choose to imitate elves, and make the disguise an elven female, but you cannot later disguise yourself as an elven male). Alternate Form has been altered to grant an at-will disguise self to allow you to 'transform' like the Kitsune myths describe, and reduced the requirements to compensate. These were based on erikun's advice. Changed the Spirit Fire ability to grant burning hands as a SLA instead of fireball, and adjusted the requirements accordingly. Favored class changed to Wu-Jen, but note the Druid may be used if you lack access to the Wu-Jen. This was based on radmelon's advice. Added the fact you can't use weapons/armor in the Kitsune's true form, which I forgot to clarify.

6/15/10: Transformation once again allows you to imitate any race freely, but no longer changes your size (except in appearance). People who interact with the kitsune for more then an hour gain a +2 to spot checks against their disguises/to identify them, and those who now the kitsune on a personal level gain a +6 to spot checks instead. The alternate form feat was dropped, as it no longer serves a purpose.

6/17/10: Concentration check to keep the tails hidden must now be done once every (hitdie) hours. A tougher concentration check must be made once every hour when interacting with someone who has met the kitsune before, and failing grants the untyped Spot bonuses mentioned above. Succeeding prevents them from recognizing the kitsune and receiving the bonus for 1 hour.

7/12/10: Small fluff fixes, a few spelling/grammar errors corrected. Removed the Improved Illusionist feat, as it had no purpose after the creation of the Natural Illusionist feat.

9/25/11: Fixed an error under the Spirit Fire racial feat where Fireball was mentioned under special despite the feat providing Burning Hands. Added a new racial feature called 'Ageless', serving as a substitute for age categories. Expanded and cleaned up most of the fluff.

11/3/11: Changed the Charisma score prerequisite of Curse of the Nine Tails from 20 to 16.

UserShadow7989
2010-06-07, 05:19 PM
Bump. Any suggestions? Balance issues? Fluff problems? Is the title of the thread off putting, or does my writing make this a garbled mess?

DracoDei
2010-06-07, 06:15 PM
The highly probably reason nobody has responded to you is that we get Kitsune-type races pretty frequently around here, and people are probably worn out on them... I suggest using the "site:www.giantitp.com kitsune" string on google (and then when you are done with those, repeat with "foxfolk" instead of "kitsune"... the forum search seems to only SORT OF work these days, so I don't recommend that... anyway, when you have looked at those (and maybe PMed your thoughts on them to their authors if you are feeling generous), then re-do the intro to this explaining what, if anything, you feel yours does better than all the rest. Then bump the thread as you did this time around (assuming nobody else responses in the mean time).

Milskidasith
2010-06-07, 06:23 PM
It's not powerful, but by default tiny creatures are never LA 0. Also, your +1 bonus to saves feat is pretty powerful later on when it's a +5 or +7.

jiriku
2010-06-07, 06:52 PM
A better rate of scaling for Arcane Familiarity might be +1 per 4 ranks or +1 per 5 ranks of skill.

Playful trickster could scale as well, to ensure that the bonus is large enough to significantly effect play at higher levels. +1 for every 5 or 10 ranks in the appropriate skill would be appropriate.


Note: These suggestions make your feats much more powerful than most PHB feats. That's because most PHB feats involving skills and saving throws. That's because those feats are awful.

erikun
2010-06-07, 10:19 PM
Regenerating tails? Because with the occasional module introducing troll jerkey, you know somebody, somewhere will be attempting to market infinite kitsune tails.

For someone who made an emphasis on other projects lacking the traditional kitsune abilities, where is the foxfire, or the illusions, or the nine tailed curse? What about the kitsune's qualifications as a spirit, or their ability to transform into more than just a human disguise? (Although perhaps the last one is just local myths.)

Most kitsune I have heard about have a notably chaotic bend. While they can follow the rules when it suits them, I wouldn't really call any of them lawful. Even the ones following Inari are more likely to trick, skirt, or break any laws they wish rather than trying to work within the system.

A kitsune as described would be a Monsterous Humanoid (Shapeshifter). They wouldn't have the Human subtype, or any others, because they only disguise themselves as humanoids. They aren't ever actually human.

The asian red fox would be a small creature. Most foxes I've seen in modules typically have stats similar to the Dog (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/dog.htm). A tiny fox would be the size of a Fennec.

Growing multiple tails through experience level is... well, it feels odd. I guess it isn't that strange, though, as a kitsune's progress through their tails isn't consistent from myth to myth.

It would probably make more sense to just use the statblock for the humanoid disguise and have an "Alternate Form" ability for changing into the fox. The humanoid form is the one that will be most frequently used, and some of the abilities (Flawed Disguise) obviously refer to the humanoid form. It also keeps the Improved Transformation Kitsune from having the odd situation where they never use their "actual" ability scores.

Speaking of which, the last sentence in Flawed Disguise is worded funny. I'm not sure what "negates the racial bonus provided by this ability" is supposed to mean, as Flawed Disguise doesn't grant a racial bonus.

It would make more sense for Kitsune to have Low-Light Vision rather than Darkvision. They don't crawl through caves, after all.

The racial bonuses don't make much sense, especially when they stop applying when you turn into a fox.

There are far, far too many always-class skills. Heck, the race is potentially overpowering just from that. I can see Disguise being an always-class skill, as it is very important for the Kitsune to remain in disguise. The rest don't make much sense.

Automatic Languages should probably be Common and Sylvan or, more appropriately, Common and one other. It highlights their ability to move around and blend into society. It's also strange, given that they are supposed to be foxes yet earlier, you emphasized that foxes have no language.

Arcane Familiarity would make more sense with a 4 ranks prerequisite, with the benefit being "You gain a +1 racial bonus on saving throws, with an additional +1 for every additional 4 skill ranks beyond the prerequisite (maximum +5 at 20 skill ranks)." I'm paraphrasing, of course. This also seems like something that would be based off Intelligence, not Charisma, given that it involves how well you know your arcana.

Improved Transformation, as mentioned before, is odd. As it is written, you lose your racial ability scores when you use the Transformation ability anyways.

I think that's a good start.

Owrtho
2010-06-08, 12:05 AM
A kitsune should be a magical beast, not a monstrous humanoid.

Owrtho

UserShadow7989
2010-06-08, 07:34 PM
Regenerating tails? Because with the occasional module introducing troll jerkey, you know somebody, somewhere will be attempting to market infinite kitsune tails.

True, but it takes a whole week for them to grow back, the tail itself doesn't have any written value, and I imagine cutting off your own tail is asking for a large amount of self damage. Assuming the DM doesn't say "no, I don't think you character would willingly mutilate him/herself, veto".


For someone who made an emphasis on other projects lacking the traditional kitsune abilities, where is the foxfire, or the illusions, or the nine tailed curse? What about the kitsune's qualifications as a spirit, or their ability to transform into more than just a human disguise? (Although perhaps the last one is just local myths.)

I forgot races could have Spell-like Abilities. Now that I'm not staring at a text document at 4 in the morning, I gave them dancing lights and minor image to cover the illusions and fox fire. I can't find any information on the exact nature of the nine tail curse, and I'm still digging through d20srd.org (my only access to anything D&D since I don't have a PHB anymore) to find curses.

I don't know how to represent the Kitsune's qualifications as a spirit. They are, fundamentally, the same as foxes outside of their magical abilities. The word 'spirit' is used to "reflect a state of knowledge or enlightenment", as Wikipedia puts it. The one thing they do that's out and out reminiscent of a spirit in the traditional sense is possess people (usually old men or young women), which I'm not sure how to translate to D&D (especially without it being broken). Shame, cause being able to possess people would be awesome.

Also, I think transforming into objects is just the Tanuki. I don't know if a Kitsune could do it.


Most kitsune I have heard about have a notably chaotic bend. While they can follow the rules when it suits them, I wouldn't really call any of them lawful. Even the ones following Inari are more likely to trick, skirt, or break any laws they wish rather than trying to work within the system.

Point taken, fluff updated to note how heavily Kitsunes lean towards chaotic.


A kitsune as described would be a Monsterous Humanoid (Shapeshifter). They wouldn't have the Human subtype, or any others, because they only disguise themselves as humanoids. They aren't ever actually human.

I had forgotten about subtypes entirely. Owrtho pointed out that Kitsunes should be magical beasts (being magic foxes, basically), and I changed their type to that.


The asian red fox would be a small creature. Most foxes I've seen in modules typically have stats similar to the Dog (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/dog.htm). A tiny fox would be the size of a Fennec.

I didn't realize the Asian red fox was bigger then those around where I live. Size updated to reflect this.


Growing multiple tails through experience level is... well, it feels odd. I guess it isn't that strange, though, as a kitsune's progress through their tails isn't consistent from myth to myth.

I couldn't come up with any other way to represent 'growth' in a mechanical manner. Some myths say it's age, others spiritual improvement, and a few I've heard say it's just repeated usage of their powers (like how lifting weights make your arm muscles grow). I went with level since a person with a high level would have traveled far and likely grown more then someone who just sat around for hundreds of years.


It would probably make more sense to just use the statblock for the humanoid disguise and have an "Alternate Form" ability for changing into the fox. The humanoid form is the one that will be most frequently used, and some of the abilities (Flawed Disguise) obviously refer to the humanoid form. It also keeps the Improved Transformation Kitsune from having the odd situation where they never use their "actual" ability scores.

I tried making two different stat blocks for my first draft of the race, but I kept making it a tangled mess. Ultimately, I just made the Animal Shape racial ability to represent the Kitsune's true self and the Transformation racial ability represent the humanoid disguise.


Speaking of which, the last sentence in Flawed Disguise is worded funny. I'm not sure what "negates the racial bonus provided by this ability" is supposed to mean, as Flawed Disguise doesn't grant a racial bonus.

Fixed. I was trying to say the penalties for disguising as another race/age category/gender would apply if someone was suspicious of them, but now that I look at it that doesn't make sense (those parts of the disguise aren't flawed, it's the tail that can never go away).


It would make more sense for Kitsune to have Low-Light Vision rather than Darkvision. They don't crawl through caves, after all.

That's true. Fixed.


The racial bonuses don't make much sense, especially when they stop applying when you turn into a fox.

They don't stop applying when you turn into a fox. The spot/listen/search bonus (now removed, as I realized they were just filler and didn't suit any of the myths in any significant way) only worked when you WERE a fox, Animal Shape's restrictions, Wisdom Bonus, and Strength Penalty also only applied when you weren't transformed.

I switched the Dex bonus for a Wis bonus to better represent their cunning. would Int be more fitting for that?


There are far, far too many always-class skills. Heck, the race is potentially overpowering just from that. I can see Disguise being an always-class skill, as it is very important for the Kitsune to remain in disguise. The rest don't make much sense.

Cut it down to just Disguise. The others were to reinforce the trickery theme, but as you pointed out that was just overkill.


Automatic Languages should probably be Common and Sylvan or, more appropriately, Common and one other. It highlights their ability to move around and blend into society. It's also strange, given that they are supposed to be foxes yet earlier, you emphasized that foxes have no language.

Fixed.


Arcane Familiarity would make more sense with a 4 ranks prerequisite, with the benefit being "You gain a +1 racial bonus on saving throws, with an additional +1 for every additional 4 skill ranks beyond the prerequisite (maximum +5 at 20 skill ranks)." I'm paraphrasing, of course. This also seems like something that would be based off Intelligence, not Charisma, given that it involves how well you know your arcana.

Done and done.


Improved Transformation, as mentioned before, is odd. As it is written, you lose your racial ability scores when you use the Transformation ability anyways.

I never intended for you to lose racial ability scores when you used Transformation, just that you never gained new ones. Improved lets you choose between your actual racial ability scores or those of the selected race. I tried to rewrite Transformation to be clearer, but I don't know if wrote it right this time.


I think that's a good start.

Thank you for all the criticism. It really helped me fix it up, and I hope it's better now that I've gone back and edited it.


A kitsune should be a magical beast, not a monstrous humanoid.

Owrtho

Magical beast is more fitting, isn't it? Fixed, and thank you for the help.

Since I didn't have the manners to do so previously, I'd also like thank DracoDei, Milskidasith, and jiriku while I'm at it.

Owrtho
2010-06-08, 08:53 PM
I'd suggest that Improved Transformation only effect physical ability scores, as you remain mentally the same being.
Also, you should say just level or HD rather than class level. Class level is used in descriptions of abilities for a class and means only levels of that class. Using it for a race doesn't make sense as you don't take levels in a race.
Also, I'd suggest that you give them a bonus to Dex while in animal form rather than wisdom. As I mentioned with the Improved Transformation, you don't change mentally when you change form. Also foxes tend to be rather dexterous.

Also while up to you, in myths they are able to remove their ears and tail. Some myths just have this more difficult so that while distracted or surprised they will accidentally stop hiding them (they also would sometimes have the coat of fur). As such it seems like it would be more accurate to the myths if they instead required concentration checks or similar to keep those transformed.

It also seems like the multiple tails has little effect. As they often directly corresponded to a kitsune's power in myths, it might make sense if their racial spell like abilities' power are based off the number of tails the kitsune has.

Owrtho

erikun
2010-06-08, 10:21 PM
I agree that the original -2 Str, +2 Dex, -2 Con, +2 Cha fits the Kitsune better than a Wisdom bonus. If anything, a Kitsune would have a Wisdom penality because, even though they are tricky, they have a tendency to fall for similar tricks. The above is a fairly interesting mix of advantages and disadvantages, and the higher Charisma makes sense for something that is instinctively deceptive and magical. Besides, -2 Str, +2 Dex, -2 Con, +2 Int, -2 Wis, +2 Cha just feels too busy for a stat block.

As for Foxfire (Dancing Lights), I would give it a number of uses each day equal to the number of tails on the kitsune. Foxfire is said to be generated from the tails of the kitsune, so it makes sense thematically and is a nice benefit for the race. I would give it a caster level equal to the Kitsune's Hit Dice, just so it can scale with the character (and avoid that unusual formula).

As for illusions and Charm Person, perhaps those would better be handled as class abilities rather than SLAs. Sorry to be picky, but the Kitsune's SLAs are currently too similar to a Gnome's. That, and it would perhaps make more sense if an illusionist kitsune actually had a bag full of illusions to choose from. Perhaps you could allow access to the Shadowcraft Mage prestige class to Kitsune, to emphasize their natural talents towards illusions. (Shadowcraft Mage is otherwise limited to Gnomes only.)

Bestow Curse (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/bestowCurse.htm) is the general "curse" spell found in D&D. Given that a kitsune's curse is said to develop only in the more powerful kitsune, an epic racial feat granting Bestow Curse 1/day shouldn't be that bad. It would probably be within reason of other epic feats, and would be nice for the Kitsune Rogue. You'd want to increase the DC, perhaps up to 20 + CHA modifier, to make it useful though.

Most of my other comments probably involved rambling a bit at it being too late that evening. I referred to kitsune as spirits in the sense that they can find the way to various levels of the afterlife in folklore, but this doesn't translate well into D&D. Walking to heaven or hell in japanese myth is far different than using Plane Shift in D&D, so I wouldn't recommend anything like that. Full grown foxes are around 4" and between 8-17 lb, putting them comfortably in the small size category (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/movementPositionAndDistance.htm#bigandLittleCreatu resInCombat). Gaining tails from leveling isn't too unusual - they're gained from anything from age, to prestige, to power, to social status in myth. It's just odd to see one go from 1 tail to 9 tails in a matter of several months (the length of most campaigns I've been in).

A few links for you, if you'd like. Some about foxes, some about kitsune.

http://www.ozfoxes.com/aafoxes.htm
http://www.comnet.ca/~foxtrot/kitsune/kitsune1.htm
http://www.coyotes.org/kitsune/kitsune.html
and of course, Wikipedia.

DracoDei
2010-06-08, 10:46 PM
A third level spell 1/day is weak, even compared to the published Epic feats (which the general concensus has as underpowered).

UserShadow7989
2010-06-10, 01:34 PM
Bestow Curse 1/day is pretty weak for an Epic level anything, even with a boosted DC. Since the flavor requires the curses to be available starting at epic, I gave it more daily uses to make up for it. 9/day is probably overkill, but better slightly overpowered then underpowered.

I dropped the Minor Image and Charm Person from the SLA list and gave her the ability to take levels of the Shadowcraft Mage as advised. While I did so, I got an idea from the "That, and it would perhaps make more sense if an illusionist kitsune actually had a bag full of illusions to choose from". The result is a feat that lets you learn an illusion as a SLA every time you take it, with increasingly difficult requirements every time you want another one.

Thanks for the informative links, erikun. I'm looking through to see what can be adapted for use. Maybe some of the stuff that's hard to implement can be used for a race exclusive Prestige Class...

Edit: Also, I found that Foxes have poor eye sight (more reliant on motion) but a good sense of smell. I had Scent as a class ability before I posted it, but cut it last minute because it made the stat block look too inflated and I was worried it'd push it into LA +1. Should I give them Scent? What should I drop/nerf if I do?

erikun
2010-06-10, 02:16 PM
All animals in D&D have low-light vision, including the bat, badger, poisonous snakes, and several others that it doesn't make sense on. All animals have low-light vision by default (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/typesSubtypes.htm#animalType), so it's probably better to just stick with low-light vision on the kitsune unless you feel strongly about it.

I'm not sure how strong a Scent ability would be. Like flight, it opens up a lot of possibilities but it leaves the character unusually vulnerable. Scent would probably push them up to +1 LA honestly, simply because of what it can do.

I was considering recommending a racial paragon class (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/races/racialParagonClasses.htm) for the Kitsune to encompass all its abilities, but decided that their capabilities could better be described as spellcasting or the racial abilities/feats. It's certainly an idea to look at, but remember that even a 5-level PrC takes a lot away from spellcasters. It will also be difficult to fit all the abilities of a kitsune within 5 levels, yet make them balanced from 1st level to 20th level.

Also: most people don't use racial paragons because they just aren't very good. About the only one I've seen used is the human paragon, for turning any one skill into a class skill of all classes.

The Specialist Illusionist Variant (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/specialistWizardVariants.htm#illusionistVariants) has one option of learning all illusionist spells as through the Spell Mastery feat - that is, they may be prepared without a spellbook. This is probably a bit better than learning something like Shadow Conjuration as a SLA, especially not six times per day. :smallwink: Or perhaps you can only allow taking SLAs in spells you actually know. I'll have to think about it for a bit.

UserShadow7989
2010-06-10, 03:45 PM
I wasn't planning on dropping LLV so much as giving the Kitsune a drawback of only seeing half the normal distance in exchange for scent. Reflecting on it, I'm not comfortable giving such a strong drawback for a potentially powerful racial ability; I prefer small benefits and penalties instead of larger ones.

I have no clue on how to make a good racial paragon class, as cool as the idea looks. I agree that presenting the capabilities as racial abilities/feats works better, anyhow. I'll hold off on a PrC until I have more experience, since they're real hard to balance.

I forgot all about Shadow Conjuration and it's ilk. I'm wondering if i should just ban the Shadow ____ Illusion spells or limit the illusions to level 3 or lower spells. In the meantime, I've put a hard limit of 3 times a day on SLA gained from the Natural Illusionist, even if number of tails would allow more then that.

I'm not big on limiting it to only Spell-like Abilities of spells known. That means anyone wanting to play a Kitsune Rogue who uses illusions to distract and confuse enemies is SOL if they don't want to multiclass. It doesn't really stop spellcasters from getting free uses of Shadow Conjuration and such.

DracoDei
2010-06-10, 04:51 PM
I think Low-Light fits, at least in any form that also has scent. Scent is mostly useful for detecting invisible creatures and tracking... unless the GM is really good at describing things by scent, in which case it is both a deeper level of immersion, and potentially more useful.

As for weak vision, I would say that a flat penalty to spot and search would be the most obvious way to go. It isn't much of a mechanical disadvantage for a sorcerer, but a rogue would be hurting for the Search a little, and it does model it... if you want to get more complicated, I suppose you could also throw in something along the lines of:

Kitsune treat all ranged attacks with a range increment of greater than 60 feet as if their range increment were 60 feet for purposes of determining to-hit penalties. This includes spells, but does NOT effect the maximum range at which any spell may be attempted at. Thus a 6th level kitsune sorcerer casting Acid Arrow (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/acidArrow.htm) against a target 70 feet away would take a -2 range penalty on their ranged touch attack roll. The attack could still be directed against a target up to 640 feet away, but in such a case it would incur a -20 to-hit penalty.
Of course, you can play around with the 60' number to whatever you like... I would NOT base it on the base range increment of the weapon, and I would NOT reduce it lower than 30 feet, but other than that, 60' is just my best first guess.

UserShadow7989
2010-06-10, 05:59 PM
I think Low-Light fits, at least in any form that also has scent. Scent is mostly useful for detecting invisible creatures and tracking... unless the GM is really good at describing things by scent, in which case it is both a deeper level of immersion, and potentially more useful.

As for weak vision, I would say that a flat penalty to spot and search would be the most obvious way to go. It isn't much of a mechanical disadvantage for a sorcerer, but a rogue would be hurting for the Search a little, and it does model it...

As much as I love Scent, I'm growing more adverse to both it and the sight penalty as I go. I don't know of any myths that mention Kitsune having the poor eyesight/strong noses of their non-magical kin, or such. I try to avoid anything that makes a specific class choice less valid (you shouldn't be punished for picking a race/class combination you like), and a Rogue is a very fitting choice for the Kitsune's fluff, so I wouldn't want to hinder that too much. A flat penalty seems the best way to convey any sight problems, though.


if you want to get more complicated, I suppose you could also throw in something along the lines of:


Kitsune treat all ranged attacks with a range increment of greater than 60 feet as if their range increment were 60 feet for purposes of determining to-hit penalties. This includes spells, but does NOT effect the maximum range at which any spell may be attempted at. Thus a 6th level kitsune sorcerer casting Acid Arrow against a target 70 feet away would take a -2 range penalty on their ranged touch attack roll. The attack could still be directed against a target up to 640 feet away, but in such a case it would incur a -20 to-hit penalty.

Of course, you can play around with the 60' number to whatever you like... I would NOT base it on the base range increment of the weapon, and I would NOT reduce it lower than 30 feet, but other than that, 60' is just my best first guess.

That's a sweet idea, though I think a potential -8 or more to hit is a huge draw back whenever you're in a situation where the enemy is far away. It's more 'fair' because it penalizes a lot of classes to similar degrees as opposed to only one or two, though it doesn't hurt if you pick a class/spell list that's focused on being close and personal. Of course, the Con penalty makes up the difference there...

radmelon
2010-06-11, 10:50 PM
I can honestly say that this is the best done kitsune race I've seen here yet.:smallcool:
<edit> And does the transformation include clothes?

UserShadow7989
2010-06-12, 08:09 PM
I can honestly say that this is the best done kitsune race I've seen here yet.:smallcool:
<edit> And does the transformation include clothes?

Thanks. I never thought about whether transformation would provide clothing, but I don't see why not. The clothing would be part of the illusion though, and wouldn't have physical use or interact with physical objects.

radmelon
2010-06-12, 11:28 PM
Also, in my opinion, the spirit fire feat should be burning hands, not fireball. I'm not sure why, but it feels better to me.
Also, don't you think Wu-Jen would be a better favored class?

The Anarresti
2010-06-13, 12:21 AM
I think that kitsune should have the ability to communicate with other kistune and canines (and other creatures with a similar ability, such as werewolves) as if using speak with animals as an extraordinary ability, in both their natural and humanoid forms. It makes sense, and it gives the kitsune an idea of racial coherence. As it stands now, two kitsune from two different places will share nothing cultural in common except for both speaking the language Common. They have more of the culture of the humanoid people that they live among than any culture of their own. I'd emphasis kitsune as outsiders looking in on humanoid society, not doppleganger-like creatures blending seamlessly into society.
Also, given how integral shapeshifting is to the race, I'd give them the shape-changer subtype. Lastly, the ability to change into any player race is a bit overpowered: effectively, they can use either Medium or Small form, whichever is more beneficial. I'd give them some more spell-like abilities (ghost sound? Maybe dream and invisibility at higher levels?) and slap 'em with a LA.

UserShadow7989
2010-06-13, 08:08 PM
@Radmelon: I only have access to what's on http://www.d20srd.org/ , so I don't know what Wu-Jen is. I'm a bit split between Fireball and Burning Hands myself, but I went with Fireball since it fits the appearance of Fox Fire better.


I think that kitsune should have the ability to communicate with other kistune and canines (and other creatures with a similar ability, such as werewolves) as if using speak with animals as an extraordinary ability, in both their natural and humanoid forms. It makes sense, and it gives the kitsune an idea of racial coherence. As it stands now, two kitsune from two different places will share nothing cultural in common except for both speaking the language Common. They have more of the culture of the humanoid people that they live among than any culture of their own. I'd emphasis kitsune as outsiders looking in on humanoid society, not doppleganger-like creatures blending seamlessly into society.
Also, given how integral shapeshifting is to the race, I'd give them the shape-changer subtype. Lastly, the ability to change into any player race is a bit overpowered: effectively, they can use either Medium or Small form, whichever is more beneficial. I'd give them some more spell-like abilities (ghost sound? Maybe dream and invisibility at higher levels?) and slap 'em with a LA.

I added the Shapechanger subtype, gave them the ability to communicate with other Kitsune and foxes as an extraordinary ability, and modified the fluff to emphasize the outsider looking in flavor.

I'm trying to avoid a LA on the race, simply because it's never worth it in the long run and I've seen people act adverse to using a race with LA under any condition. I slapped a DC 20 Concentration check to Transform mid-combat, and bumped it up to a full action (failing the check means you lose the action). Will that be enough to keep it reasonable for a LA +0, or should I drop it and add on the SLAes and LA? Should I still add in the ghost sound spell as a SLA if it is fine for LA +0?

Edit: Speaking of the Shapechanger subtype, the d20srd states that most Shapechangers have a Natural Attack they're proficient with. Should I give them a weak Natural Attack in their true form?

erikun
2010-06-13, 08:22 PM
1d4 + Strength modifer bite attack would make the most sense.

The Anarresti
2010-06-13, 08:50 PM
I would say give them only one alternate form, like the aranea, and have them choose at first level what common race they imitate. This would eliminate being able to be effectively both Small and Medium whenever they wanted. They would probably spend most of their humanoid time in just one shape anyway.

UserShadow7989
2010-06-13, 09:03 PM
Done and done. I'm thinking of making the original version of Transform/Flawed Disguise a racial feat with much stiffer requirements then the others, and have the 'beta' version under the Racial Feats section.

Owrtho
2010-06-13, 09:29 PM
My suggestion with the transformation is that they start with one race they can transform into, but can look like any member of that race. I'd then add a feat that can be taken multiple times to give them another race they can transform into each time.

Owrtho

erikun
2010-06-13, 10:25 PM
My suggestion would be for Transformation to turn you into a specific body of your chosen race, while the Alternate Form feat grants you the equilivant of a Disguise Self (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/disguiseSelf.htm) at will. I rather dislike the idea of freely being able to change your humanoid form with no chance of discovery, which is basically what it does now. (Right now, if you appear as an elven female, there is absolutely no way to identify you as your human male form, even if you are discovered.)

radmelon
2010-06-14, 09:11 AM
Wu-Jen is an oriental themed spellcaster from both Complete Arcane and Oriental Adventures. And as for the foxfire, Burning hands can be re-fluffed.

UserShadow7989
2010-06-14, 12:50 PM
Transformation now changes you into a specific form, and Alternate Form grants Disguise Self at will. Wu-Jen is now the favored class (though you can treat it as Druid if you don't have access to Wu-Jen), and Spirit Fire now grants Burning Hands instead of Fireball.

I'm a bit uncomfortable nerfing the Kitsune's transformation so much since it's their trademark ability, but I see how it could be a bit overpowered. An idea just occurred to me. What if, instead of being limited to a single form, they have to choose 2-4 characteristics that all their disguises share (bright red hair, multiple scars or a scar in the same place/shape, lines on their cheeks resembling whiskers, always male/female, always short/tall, always skinny/fat, always young/old, etc.)? It would make their forms identifiable with one another without terribly gimping the ability itself. The number of characteristics are reduced at higher levels, and eliminated at Epic Level.

Edit: Something along the lines of this:

Transformation: All kitsunes are capable of transforming into another race's shape. Select one Medium-sized or smaller humanoid player race at character creation. As a full-round action that provokes an attack of opportunity, the Kitsune disguises itself as a member of the race.

While the disguises are many and can vary wildly, Kitsunes have a tendency to constantly reuse traits they like. The player selects 4 notable traits at character creation that must be in every disguise they use, such as a hair color, a body type, an age group, a distinguishing marking like a scar or tattoo, and so on. Every 5th level after the 1st, reduce the required number of traits by 1.

They are no longer effected by the Animal Shape racial ability (see above), and are treated as the same size as the chosen humanoid when transformed. The kitsune does not gain the racial abilities of the race she imitates or lose her normal racial bonuses/abilities. She reverts back to her animal shape when entering a anti-magic field, effected by anything that negates supernatural abilities, or rendered unconscious. Trueseeing and divination spells or abilities will reveal her true appearance, though it won't return her to her true form. Kitsunes can change back to their normal state as an instant action.

Does anyone think this is a good idea?

Owrtho
2010-06-14, 08:49 PM
I still don't think the transformation should limit you to a specific form of the given race. The mythology doesn't have show that it does (even if they had proffered forms), and as it is magical transformation it makes sense that they can change their look as they feel like without people getting a special bonus based on the appearance.
If it is felt that something must be done to make it easier to recognize a specific kitsune, then base it on their personality and actions. Things like small habits or mannerisms rather than appearance. It could be something like someone who interacts with them enough gains a bonus to recognizing them after interacting with their disguise after a period of time. The kitsune could make some check to try and avoid this, but would need to make it regularly (sort of a staying in character issue).

Owrtho

UserShadow7989
2010-06-14, 09:23 PM
I still don't think the transformation should limit you to a specific form of the given race. The mythology doesn't have show that it does (even if they had proffered forms), and as it is magical transformation it makes sense that they can change their look as they feel like without people getting a special bonus based on the appearance.

I agree, I hate to keep limiting it, it's the entire trademark of the race, and they don't get anything special outside of it (gee, two level 0 SLAs, Low Light Vision, and some fluff abilities. And if hit with dispel or a anti-magic zone they're a weak little fox with no weapons, armor, or spells that require verbal/somantic components. Yay.), so I'm almost at the 'screw it' point and just giving them the original transformation, with all the potential medium/small abuse it carries.

I could just say you're still treated as small in terms of AC/Attack Rolls/Grapple Rolls/Hide bonuses/penalties when taking on a medium sized shape and skip the whole deal.


If it is felt that something must be done to make it easier to recognize a specific kitsune, then base it on their personality and actions. Things like small habits or mannerisms rather than appearance. It could be something like someone who interacts with them enough gains a bonus to recognizing them after interacting with their disguise after a period of time. The kitsune could make some check to try and avoid this, but would need to make it regularly (sort of a staying in character issue).

Owrtho

This sounds good to me. Are there any objections?