PDA

View Full Version : Jerboans [Tiny-sized, adorable PCs! PEACH!]



Admiral Squish
2012-05-28, 03:51 AM
Jerboan

http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2012/089/b/0/jerboa_by_leen_galeas-d4udzul.png

Jerboans are a race of desert-dwelling rodentlike sapients. To look at one, you wouldn't think they were intelligent creatures at all. They look like large mice raised up on long, slender hind legs, with long, flexible tails tipped with a black and white tuft of fur. They tend to live in small, nomadic family groups, sharing a communal den dug under the sand. They are extremely energetic and bear a strange likeability, where they can be simultaneously infuriating and endearing.

Personality: Jerboans are exceptionally energetic. They are hyperactive, bouncy, and often nervous. They live perpetually in the moment, and very rarely plan beyond the next few minutes. But despite their potentially infuriating amount of energy, jerboans exude a cheery, personable aura, quickly making friends even as they annoy those around them.
Physical Description: Jerboans look much like large mice elevated on long, slender hind legs, with forelimbs tucked against their chests. A jerboan’s round body measures about a foot long and, when standing, stand about a foot and a half at the shoulder. If they want, they can fully extend their long legs and raise their bodies upright for a total height of about four feet. They have flexible tails that are almost a two feet long, tipped with a fluff of black fur. Their small forelimbs end in four-fingered hands. Their fur ranges from yellow to sandy brown and sometimes to darker shades. A jerboan’s life is brief, reaching adulthood within 5 years and rarely living past 30.
Relations: Jerboans are energetic and flighty. They tend to get along well with halflings, provided the small humanoids don’t hunt try to hunt or trap them. Most other races rarely come in contact with them as many live their entire lives deep in the desert where most don’t travel.
Alignment: Jerboans are usually good, and almost always chaotic.
{table=head]|L|N|C
G|10|15|25
N|5|10|15
E|5|5|10[/table]
Lands: Jerboans dwell deep in the desert areas. They tend to live in small family groups, almost never more than 10 to a group. They dig small dens in the sand where they spend the the hottest part of the day sleeping. These dens are where the family will store their belongings, though they place little stock in material possessions.
Religion: The closest thing most jerboans have to ‘proper’ religion is the tales they pass down from one generation to the next. Most adult jerboans can tell you the entire history of their people all the way back to their ‘awakening’. They believe they were once as normal mice, granted their minds by a god of life and nature, who they refer to as ‘chit-chiturr’ (Pronounced with a squeak)
Language: Among themselves, jerboans speak their own language, which sounds much like typical rodent sounds. However, many families also speak common.
Names: Jerboans are referred to by their position in the family until they earn their own name. Their first name is usually one they use for most things, though they sometimes will carry more than one if they accomplish something else of note. Jerboans also have a family name, which they create when they take a mate.
Adventurers: Jerboan adventurers are uncommon. They generally prefer to run or hide from threats. Those who do choose to strike back usually do so from hiding.


+4 Dexterity, +2 Charisma, -4 Strength, -2 Constitution
Tiny: As a Tiny creature, a jerboan gains a +2 size bonus to Armor Class, a +2 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +8 size bonus on Hide checks, but she uses smaller weapons than humans use, and her lifting and carrying limits are 1/2 of those of a Medium character.
Magical Beast: Jerboans are creatures of the magical beast type, which affect how certain spells and abilities may affect them.
Jerboan base land speed is 40 feet.
low-light vision: A jerboan can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. He retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
Darkvision: Jerboans can see in the dark up to 60 feet. Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and jerboans can function just fine with no light at all.
Skills: A jerboan gains a +4 racial bonus to balance checks to their long tail, and a +4 racial bonus to listen checks due to their large ears. Their long, springboard legs grant them a +10 racial bonus to jump checks.
Heat Endurance: Jerboans gain Heat Endurance (SS P. 50) as a bonus feat.
Automatic Languages: Jerboan and common. Bonus Languages: Asherati, Bhuka, Halfling.
Favored Class: Rogue
LA +1

Admiral Squish
2012-05-28, 04:07 AM
Not entirely sure what inspired these guys, but they're one of three fuzzy races I'll be posting over the next few days. I'm not entirely sure how powerful tiny sized is as a racial feature, so I'm not sure if they deserve +1 or +2 LA.

Virdish
2012-05-28, 08:46 AM
I'd say la +1. I mean their nice and I like the fluff but don't think they are quite worth a +2.

Admiral Squish
2012-05-28, 10:15 AM
Well, I'll take your advice until somebody comes along to tell me otherwise.

Bhu
2012-05-28, 12:07 PM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82utG7Q3G_k

I'd go with a +1 too

Admiral Squish
2012-05-28, 03:22 PM
I shall rest assured this eve that my creation is balanced, in that case.

TuggyNE
2012-05-28, 04:01 PM
If anything, they're probably on the weak side of LA +1, IMO. So they should be fine.

Answerer
2012-05-28, 06:26 PM
This is absolutely not worth LA +1. Tiny size is mostly a drawback, and it has net-0 ability scores with a Con penalty, which is about as bad as ability scores get, even for LA +0. Heat Endurance is a crappy feat, and in any case is given out quite freely in Sandstorm's races, so it's not really particularly notable here.

A Web Enhancement Kobold is Small with Slight Build, which is way, way better than actually being Tiny, has three natural weapons, and, of course, has access to some utterly ridiculous feats. While I'm certainly not suggesting that you replicate some of the worst Dragonwrought shenanigans (particularly the Greater Draconic Rite of Passge), the race overall is reasonably well balanced, and literally better than these in every way, even if this was LA +0.

Admiral Squish
2012-05-28, 08:04 PM
This is absolutely not worth LA +1. Tiny size is mostly a drawback, and it has net-0 ability scores with a Con penalty, which is about as bad as ability scores get, even for LA +0. Heat Endurance is a crappy feat, and in any case is given out quite freely in Sandstorm's races, so it's not really particularly notable here.

A Web Enhancement Kobold is Small with Slight Build, which is way, way better than actually being Tiny, has three natural weapons, and, of course, has access to some utterly ridiculous feats. While I'm certainly not suggesting that you replicate some of the worst Dragonwrought shenanigans (particularly the Greater Draconic Rite of Passge), the race overall is reasonably well balanced, and literally better than these in every way, even if this was LA +0.

Slight build didn't fit. They're supposed to be very small and very lightly built. If anything, they're supposed to be lighter-weight than their size would indicate. I tried to build it with slight build, but then I felt it necessary to include a featherweight ability, which basically made them tiny in everything but reach. I decided it was overly complicated and just made them tiny-sized.

What would you suggest to compensate, to make the worth at least La 0 in your eyes? Higher ability mods? I was banking on the multiple skill bonuses and high land speed to even it out so some degree.

Answerer
2012-05-28, 08:21 PM
To start with, Reach, because having 0 ft. Reach is just untenable. I realize that basically every Jerboan ever will use ranged attacks anyway, but even then 0 ft. is just insulting.

Beyond that, something useful. The skill bonuses are minor: no one much cares about Balance besides the 5 requisite ranks, though Listen is good and the Jump bonus is pretty massive between the speed and the bonus. But ultimately, these are just not high-power skills. It's not like the Whisper Gnome who becomes ridiculous at stealth.

The extra speed doesn't mean that much – parties tend to stick together, so the party is only as fast as its slowest member. It's good that the Jerboan won't be the slowest, but their extra speed is a highly situational bonus.

Tiny size has some nice bonuses (AC, attack, Hide, etc.), but unlike Powerful Build, Slight Build really doesn't miss out on anything relative to being actually Tiny, so the Kobold's probably a good starting point, and this fails relative to that.

If you make the race LA +0, it's reasonable. It's not a great choice by any means (the aforementioned Kobold strikes me as better for those who want the size bonuses, and of course most would always prefer the Bonus Feat of humans or what have you), but it's definitely respectable compared to some of the crap that WotC put out (i.e. it's way, way better than Elf, Half-Elf, Half-Orc, etc. etc.). I'd probably want something just to make them have a better niche, but that depends on how important you want a character's race to be.

If you want to stick with LA +1, you're going to need a net-positive ability array, plus probably some feature that's not quite as common as skill bonuses or a meh feat.

Steward
2012-05-28, 10:01 PM
It's probably there and I missed it, but do these guys have a type? (Magical Beast? Fey? Aberration?)

reddir
2012-05-28, 11:36 PM
I mostly go for 'feel' in a race.

This race is really cute (the link was a nice touch :smallsmile:), but I can't find that spark that would make it come alive to me.

The legs are unusual. I'm having trouble picturing legs which when fully extended are 2.5 feet long...on a 1 foot long creature. The best I can come up with is a furry cricket. Do I have this right? If so, you might consider making them a more central focus of the race.

userpay
2012-05-29, 11:00 AM
Bwahaha I just had an amusing thought. Combine this race with the Super Sentai class that's being worked on right now.

Admiral Squish
2012-05-29, 06:17 PM
To start with, Reach, because having 0 ft. Reach is just untenable. I realize that basically every Jerboan ever will use ranged attacks anyway, but even then 0 ft. is just insulting.

Beyond that, something useful. The skill bonuses are minor: no one much cares about Balance besides the 5 requisite ranks, though Listen is good and the Jump bonus is pretty massive between the speed and the bonus. But ultimately, these are just not high-power skills. It's not like the Whisper Gnome who becomes ridiculous at stealth.

The extra speed doesn't mean that much – parties tend to stick together, so the party is only as fast as its slowest member. It's good that the Jerboan won't be the slowest, but their extra speed is a highly situational bonus.

Tiny size has some nice bonuses (AC, attack, Hide, etc.), but unlike Powerful Build, Slight Build really doesn't miss out on anything relative to being actually Tiny, so the Kobold's probably a good starting point, and this fails relative to that.

If you make the race LA +0, it's reasonable. It's not a great choice by any means (the aforementioned Kobold strikes me as better for those who want the size bonuses, and of course most would always prefer the Bonus Feat of humans or what have you), but it's definitely respectable compared to some of the crap that WotC put out (i.e. it's way, way better than Elf, Half-Elf, Half-Orc, etc. etc.). I'd probably want something just to make them have a better niche, but that depends on how important you want a character's race to be.

If you want to stick with LA +1, you're going to need a net-positive ability array, plus probably some feature that's not quite as common as skill bonuses or a meh feat.

Well, reach wouldn't really fit. They have those tiny little arms, if anything, their reach would be smaller than normal for their size. Maybe a weapon that could be attached to the tail, or a lance of some sort, would do something to alleviate the reach issue?

Really, all you do in this post is tell me what I did wrong. When I asked how to fix it, I was suggesting.


It's probably there and I missed it, but do these guys have a type? (Magical Beast? Fey? Aberration?)

Didn't really think about it. They might actually be magical beasts...


I mostly go for 'feel' in a race.

This race is really cute (the link was a nice touch :smallsmile:), but I can't find that spark that would make it come alive to me.

The legs are unusual. I'm having trouble picturing legs which when fully extended are 2.5 feet long...on a 1 foot long creature. The best I can come up with is a furry cricket. Do I have this right? If so, you might consider making them a more central focus of the race.

Well, look at the picture at the top. Each segment of the leg is almost as long as their entire body, then you add in the thigh. Maybe it should be more like two feet, but it's pretty insane. The problem is they typically stay low to the ground, so it's hard to really get a picture of how long the legs are.

take a look at this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7uw5HLMuP0). there's a few spots where you can see them at a full... bounce, I suppose, with the legs almost fully extended.

How would you suggest making the legs the primary focus of the race?


Bwahaha I just had an amusing thought. Combine this race with the Super Sentai class that's being worked on right now.

...that. would be. AWESOME.

TuggyNE
2012-05-30, 01:53 AM
They might actually be magical beasts...

Pretty sure they're about as Monstrous Humanoid-y as they come.

Debihuman
2012-05-30, 08:01 AM
Definitely, Magical Beasts and not Monstrous Humanoid. These aren't jerboa-folk, these are actual jerboas as a playable race. It's a fine distinction but one that needs to be made. Jerboafolk would probably be Small sized.

These should be a short-lived race by the way. And, they should have a Burrow speed.


Debby

Answerer
2012-05-30, 09:34 AM
A burrow speed would certainly help matters; that stuff is useful (or dangerous).

As for lacking specific suggestions, that's because I don't have any. I'm just not really sure what the goal for a jerboa-based race would be. I was merely stating that you had not achieved balance. My apologies if that came across as telling you that you did everything wrong or whatever. I just don't really know what you might want to give them, I just think they do need something more.

Steward
2012-05-30, 02:58 PM
Definitely, Magical Beasts and not Monstrous Humanoid. These aren't jerboa-folk, these are actual jerboas as a playable race. It's a fine distinction but one that needs to be made. Jerboafolk would probably be Small sized.

These should be a short-lived race by the way. And, they should have a Burrow speed.


Debby

Yeah, I really don't see these guys as 'Humanoid' in any sense of the word, 'Monstrous' or not. They're straight-up talking gerbils, nothing anthropomorphic about them!

Admiral Squish
2012-05-30, 08:03 PM
Alright, I made them magical beasts, and added in low-light and darkvision.

Debi: In physical description, I make mention that they're 'adult' by 5, and rarely living more than 30 years.

Also, burrow? Ehhh... I'm not sure. I mean, they do dig burrows, but they're not particularly fast about it, and they certainly don't travel underground.


Personally, I'd love to see one of these little guys with one of my movement-based barbarian totems. Hummingbird, perhaps.

I'll start working on a weapon for them to use.