Starscream
2012-12-14, 10:31 PM
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Murids
I'm currently involved in a collaborative World Building game, which we hope will eventually become the setting for a Pathfinder campaign. One of my contributions so far has been a race of jungle-dwelling rat people, who I have dubbed Murids (after the taxonomic family Muridae).
Although Pathfinder already has a race of Ratfolk (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/races/other-races/featured-races/arg-ratfolk), these weren't very similar to what I had in mind except cosmetically, so I homebrewed my own race instead. Please let me know what you think.
Intro:
Murids are a race of ratlike humanoids, who hail from the Muridan Jungle. Although not blessed with an abundance of intellect, murids are nonetheless canny survivors, with their small size, impressive agility, and natural afinity for the more "natural" forms of magic making them capable of carving out a niche in the most desperate of situations. Although some consider them pests, few would deny that their adaptability and cunning make them a force to be reckoned with, especially in large numbers.
Physical Description:
Murids are about three and a half to four feet tall, and usually weigh about seventy pounds. They are covered in fur, which typically comes in shades of brown, gray, or black, although more exotic colors like blueish gray or dark red are not unknown. Albino murids are a fairly common mutation, and these are particularly gifted in arcane magic. Their tails, almost as long as the rest of their bodies, are hairless and often drag on the ground behind them. The tribal murids of the jungle usually wear little more than a few scraps of leather in deference to the hot climate, but urban specimens are more likely to wear dark clothes and cloaks, the better to sneak around in.
Society:
Like their rodent ancestors, murids have spread far and wide, and there is hardly a civilized area of the world where they cannot be found. In their homeland murids live in large tribes, carving out a simple but harmonious existence by hunting, fishing, and trapping. They trade eagerly with other races that come to visit, particularly prizing items of advanced craftsmanship that they cannot readily make themselves.
A natural gift for druid magic suffuses the race, and those who practice it usually become the religious leaders and chiefs of the tribes. The occasional albino murid is born, and these are more intelligent but frail and less in tune with nature than most, and make up the majority of arcane casters among the race. Witchcraft is an especially common practice among these, and most tribes have a witch or two living among their outskirts; when an albino is born, it will almost certainly be given to these individuals to raise. They are respected, but rarely become leaders due to the society as a whole prefering the more "natural" magic of druidism.
In more "civilized" areas of the world, murids are often unfairly looked down upon, mostly due to their obvious resemblance to rats, which most societies consider to be filthy vermin. Although they usually keep to themselves, unenlightened people may blame them for plagues or suspect them of spreading lycanthrope as wererats, and they are usually bright enough to lay low or leave town when the rumors start.
Relations:
Murids make an effort to get along with most people, and are fond of humans, halflings, and dwarves. They have a somewhat chilly relationship with elves, as far in the past the elves kept them as slaves, due to their being strong laborors for their size. Although this was many centuries ago, the event weighs heavily in murid's oral tradition, and many of their legends are about cunning, strong, and wise murids tricking and humiliating arrogant elves. This relationship rarely errupts in violence, and there is nothing stopping an elf and a murid from being allies. But as a whole murids take a perverse pleasure in annoying elves, usually in the form of harmless but embarassing pranks, while the elves do their best to ignore them.
Conversely, as it was the dragons who freed them, murids have a great deal of respect for that race, and tend to look up to them. Murids and goblins are surprisingly on decent terms, as the murids have little worth stealing, and the goblins have a soft spot for underdogs. The ability to barter for travel on goblin ships is one of the ways the murid race became so widespread.
Alignment and Religion:
Murids tend strongly towards neutrality, and most of the race is neutral on at least one axis. Those who are not True Neutral favor chaos slightly over law, and are good and evil in about equal quantities. Good murids are often defenders of the natural world or work to free slaves. Chaotic ones tend toward thievery and confidence scams (if they have the wit for it). Evil ones may be assassins or join goblin pirate crews. Lawful murids may join monasteries or start up businesses.
They tend toward either nature worship or spirit worship, and may venerate any god that is in keeping with their personalities, but often none at all.
Adventurers:
Murids can be found in all walks of life, surviving however they can. Rogue and Ninja are common class choices for them, while the more magically inclined tend toward Druid or Ranger. Oracles are also fairly common, although Clerics are rare due to most murids venerating no one particular deity. Albino murids are almost invariably Witches, although the occasional Wizard or Alchemist may pop up. Descendents of albino murids who do not inherit the trait themselves may be sorcerers with the Arcane bloodline.
Murid Racial Traits:
* +2 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom, -2 Intelligence: Murids are agile and gifted in divine magic, but not overly bright
* Murid: Murids are humanoids with the Murid subtype
* Small: Murids are Small creatures and gain a +1 size bonus to their AC, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, a -1 penalty to their Combat Maneuver Bonus and Combat Maneuver Defense, and a +4 size bonus on Stealth checks.
* Quickness: Despite their size, murids are light on their feet and have a base speed of 30 feet
* Darkvision: Murids can see in the dark up to 60 feet, and have Low Light Vision.
* Rodent Physiology: The large ears of a murid give it a +2 to Perception checks involving hearing, and their tail gives them a +2 to acrobatics checks, due to good balance.
* Underfoot: Murids are adept at getting in the way during combat; any murid using Acrobatics to move through an opponent's space can make a trip attempt on that oponent as a swift action.
* Dragon Reverence: Murids are somewhat in awe of dragons, and take -2 penalty to saving throws against their Frightful Presence ability. This does not apply to any creatures with Frightful Presence that are not dragons.
* Languages: Murids begin play speaking Common. Murids with a high intelligence can choose from the following: Aklo, Draconic, Dwarven, Elvish, Goblin, or Halfling
Alternate Racial Traits:
* Sewer Rat: Murids are consummate survivors, and some manage to thrive even at the bottom rungs of society. These have sacrificed some of their natural fitness to be able to live on whatever they can scavenge, and wherever they can find shelter. Murids with this trait gain a +4 on saves against disease and poison, and against any magical effect that would render them sickened or nauseated. This racial trait replaces Quickness, reducing their speed to 20 ft.
* Albino: About one in a thousand murids is born with white fur and pink eyes, and these are typically smarter than average, if less in tune with nature and physically weaker. Albino murids gain Light Sensitivity, and replace their normal racial ability modifiers with the following: -2 Strength, +2 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence.
* Scavenger: Sometimes survival means doing your best with what's at hand, and some murids excel at scrounging up makeshift goods when the need arises. A murid with this trait can take an hour and search a community for a non-magical item it needs by making a Survival check against a DC of 15. This check receives a +1 bonus for every size category the settlement is over Small Town, and a -1 for every size category under it. If successful, the murid can find an item of up to 10 gp in value per character level, or 15 gp per level by settling for an item with the Broken condition (only applies to items that can be Broken). Subsequent attempts to find that item in the next 24 hours increase the DC by a cuumulative +5. This trait replaces Underfoot.
Murids
I'm currently involved in a collaborative World Building game, which we hope will eventually become the setting for a Pathfinder campaign. One of my contributions so far has been a race of jungle-dwelling rat people, who I have dubbed Murids (after the taxonomic family Muridae).
Although Pathfinder already has a race of Ratfolk (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/races/other-races/featured-races/arg-ratfolk), these weren't very similar to what I had in mind except cosmetically, so I homebrewed my own race instead. Please let me know what you think.
Intro:
Murids are a race of ratlike humanoids, who hail from the Muridan Jungle. Although not blessed with an abundance of intellect, murids are nonetheless canny survivors, with their small size, impressive agility, and natural afinity for the more "natural" forms of magic making them capable of carving out a niche in the most desperate of situations. Although some consider them pests, few would deny that their adaptability and cunning make them a force to be reckoned with, especially in large numbers.
Physical Description:
Murids are about three and a half to four feet tall, and usually weigh about seventy pounds. They are covered in fur, which typically comes in shades of brown, gray, or black, although more exotic colors like blueish gray or dark red are not unknown. Albino murids are a fairly common mutation, and these are particularly gifted in arcane magic. Their tails, almost as long as the rest of their bodies, are hairless and often drag on the ground behind them. The tribal murids of the jungle usually wear little more than a few scraps of leather in deference to the hot climate, but urban specimens are more likely to wear dark clothes and cloaks, the better to sneak around in.
Society:
Like their rodent ancestors, murids have spread far and wide, and there is hardly a civilized area of the world where they cannot be found. In their homeland murids live in large tribes, carving out a simple but harmonious existence by hunting, fishing, and trapping. They trade eagerly with other races that come to visit, particularly prizing items of advanced craftsmanship that they cannot readily make themselves.
A natural gift for druid magic suffuses the race, and those who practice it usually become the religious leaders and chiefs of the tribes. The occasional albino murid is born, and these are more intelligent but frail and less in tune with nature than most, and make up the majority of arcane casters among the race. Witchcraft is an especially common practice among these, and most tribes have a witch or two living among their outskirts; when an albino is born, it will almost certainly be given to these individuals to raise. They are respected, but rarely become leaders due to the society as a whole prefering the more "natural" magic of druidism.
In more "civilized" areas of the world, murids are often unfairly looked down upon, mostly due to their obvious resemblance to rats, which most societies consider to be filthy vermin. Although they usually keep to themselves, unenlightened people may blame them for plagues or suspect them of spreading lycanthrope as wererats, and they are usually bright enough to lay low or leave town when the rumors start.
Relations:
Murids make an effort to get along with most people, and are fond of humans, halflings, and dwarves. They have a somewhat chilly relationship with elves, as far in the past the elves kept them as slaves, due to their being strong laborors for their size. Although this was many centuries ago, the event weighs heavily in murid's oral tradition, and many of their legends are about cunning, strong, and wise murids tricking and humiliating arrogant elves. This relationship rarely errupts in violence, and there is nothing stopping an elf and a murid from being allies. But as a whole murids take a perverse pleasure in annoying elves, usually in the form of harmless but embarassing pranks, while the elves do their best to ignore them.
Conversely, as it was the dragons who freed them, murids have a great deal of respect for that race, and tend to look up to them. Murids and goblins are surprisingly on decent terms, as the murids have little worth stealing, and the goblins have a soft spot for underdogs. The ability to barter for travel on goblin ships is one of the ways the murid race became so widespread.
Alignment and Religion:
Murids tend strongly towards neutrality, and most of the race is neutral on at least one axis. Those who are not True Neutral favor chaos slightly over law, and are good and evil in about equal quantities. Good murids are often defenders of the natural world or work to free slaves. Chaotic ones tend toward thievery and confidence scams (if they have the wit for it). Evil ones may be assassins or join goblin pirate crews. Lawful murids may join monasteries or start up businesses.
They tend toward either nature worship or spirit worship, and may venerate any god that is in keeping with their personalities, but often none at all.
Adventurers:
Murids can be found in all walks of life, surviving however they can. Rogue and Ninja are common class choices for them, while the more magically inclined tend toward Druid or Ranger. Oracles are also fairly common, although Clerics are rare due to most murids venerating no one particular deity. Albino murids are almost invariably Witches, although the occasional Wizard or Alchemist may pop up. Descendents of albino murids who do not inherit the trait themselves may be sorcerers with the Arcane bloodline.
Murid Racial Traits:
* +2 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom, -2 Intelligence: Murids are agile and gifted in divine magic, but not overly bright
* Murid: Murids are humanoids with the Murid subtype
* Small: Murids are Small creatures and gain a +1 size bonus to their AC, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, a -1 penalty to their Combat Maneuver Bonus and Combat Maneuver Defense, and a +4 size bonus on Stealth checks.
* Quickness: Despite their size, murids are light on their feet and have a base speed of 30 feet
* Darkvision: Murids can see in the dark up to 60 feet, and have Low Light Vision.
* Rodent Physiology: The large ears of a murid give it a +2 to Perception checks involving hearing, and their tail gives them a +2 to acrobatics checks, due to good balance.
* Underfoot: Murids are adept at getting in the way during combat; any murid using Acrobatics to move through an opponent's space can make a trip attempt on that oponent as a swift action.
* Dragon Reverence: Murids are somewhat in awe of dragons, and take -2 penalty to saving throws against their Frightful Presence ability. This does not apply to any creatures with Frightful Presence that are not dragons.
* Languages: Murids begin play speaking Common. Murids with a high intelligence can choose from the following: Aklo, Draconic, Dwarven, Elvish, Goblin, or Halfling
Alternate Racial Traits:
* Sewer Rat: Murids are consummate survivors, and some manage to thrive even at the bottom rungs of society. These have sacrificed some of their natural fitness to be able to live on whatever they can scavenge, and wherever they can find shelter. Murids with this trait gain a +4 on saves against disease and poison, and against any magical effect that would render them sickened or nauseated. This racial trait replaces Quickness, reducing their speed to 20 ft.
* Albino: About one in a thousand murids is born with white fur and pink eyes, and these are typically smarter than average, if less in tune with nature and physically weaker. Albino murids gain Light Sensitivity, and replace their normal racial ability modifiers with the following: -2 Strength, +2 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence.
* Scavenger: Sometimes survival means doing your best with what's at hand, and some murids excel at scrounging up makeshift goods when the need arises. A murid with this trait can take an hour and search a community for a non-magical item it needs by making a Survival check against a DC of 15. This check receives a +1 bonus for every size category the settlement is over Small Town, and a -1 for every size category under it. If successful, the murid can find an item of up to 10 gp in value per character level, or 15 gp per level by settling for an item with the Broken condition (only applies to items that can be Broken). Subsequent attempts to find that item in the next 24 hours increase the DC by a cuumulative +5. This trait replaces Underfoot.