That Lanky Bugger
2007-03-01, 10:34 PM
http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s120/LankyBugger3/Rastek.png
Servants of the Gods
In the pantheon of Erathe's gods, there is a layer of existence which seperates the realm of the gods from the realm of mortals. This layer of existence is home to the Ras, a race of spirit beings who serve the gods. In the language they speak, "Ras" is the word for underling, though the word is generally interpreted to mean "trusted servant".
Not all Ras please their masters. In an existence filled with hundreds of thousands of souls serving a scant few masters, there are those who displease the gods. They are tossed aside and cursed to walk Erathe. They become the Rastek.
The Rastek Curse
The Rastek name is derived, in part, from the name of the race which spawned them, the Ras. Tek is the word for "soiled", so the literal interpretation of the Rastek title could be taken as Soiled Underling, though the word carries a darker meaning only hinted at in ancient tomes buried around Erathe.
The Rastek are not quite undead, but not quite living. Their bodies are dead, by all accounts. They can be turned by the will of a powerful good Cleric, or controlled by an evil Necromancer. However, they cannot be destroyed by goodly spells and they possess a spark of intelligence and even a respect for life. Some compare them more to golems than the zombies they appear to be, but this is unfortunately not the case.
Partial-Dead
A Rastek, simply put, is the still-living soul of the servants of the gods, cast into the dead body of the most recent person to die. The Rastek will bear the face and form of a former human person, though they will quickly grow the three goat's horns which mark them for what they are. With time, the hair of the body they inhabit will slowly become black and matted, and the eyes of the corpse will soon glow with a hellish yellow light.
The power of the Ras soul contained in the body grants the body a certain amount of life and protection, though this mostly allows the Ras soul to move the Rastek body.
Rastek in Human Society
Most Rastek are treated with pity, although should the Rastek encounter the loved ones who used to know the body it is currently occupying, it will quite often be treated with violence and hatred. A Rastek can expect to be tolerated in most large villages or cities, although small villages may be closed to it. A Rastek will be recognized as a former servant of the gods and is thus treated with some measure of respect by the clergy, though this will, for the most part, extend to pleasantries and nothing more.
Rastek Adventurers
Often the Rastek will have been assigned a specific task by the god which cast it out, and thus the Rastek must journey to complete this task before it will be allowed to return to it's native plane and resume it's former life. Some Rastek, however, are given no task and are doomed to wander Erathe forever.
Rastek Game Rule Information
Medium Undead
• Strength +2, Dex+2, Int-2: Rastek are powerful and quite agile, but due to their state of undeath their ability to think is impaired.
• Con -: As a partial undead, a Rastek possesses no constitution score.
• Base Land Speed of 30 feet
• Automatic Languages: Common, Celestial. Bonus Languages: Any
• Darkvision 60 feet
• Immunity to Sleep, Poison and Disease, though a Death effect can still rip the Rastek's spirit from it's animated body.
• Slowed Healing: Unlike other characters, a Rastek only regains 1/2 it's character level in HP after an 8-hour period of non-activity. Likewise, a Rastek will not be destroyed simply by reducing it's HP to 0.
• Rastek do not require sleep, although they must stop all movement for eight hours to gain the benefits of a night's healing. During this time they are fully aware of their surroundings.
• Feels No Pain(Ex): A Rastek gains a +2 Bonus to any rolls it makes for it's HD, and is immune to to non-lethal damage.
• Unlike a normal Undead, a Rastek can suffer the effects of a critical hit or Sneak Attack damage, as well as ability drain and energy drain.
• Unlike a normal Undead, a Rastek can be healed by Positive Energy as well as negative energy due to the spirit residing within them. Being healed in such a manner stuns (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/conditionSummary.htm#stunned) the Rastek for a number of rounds equal to the level of the spell cast to heal it.
• Natural Weapons: A Rastek may use the horns on it's head in place of any weapon it is wielding to make a Slam attack dealing 1d6+STR damage.
• A Rastek is Vulnerable to any weapon which is Holy, or has been Blessed.
• Turning Resistance (Su): The Ras soul affords the Rastek a measure of resistance against attempts to drive it away with divine power. Any Cleric making a turn attempt against a Rastek is treated as being 5 levels lower.
• Divine Weakness: The Ras, being damned by the Gods, is vulnerable to god-granted magic. It takes a -2 penalty to any save made versus a Divine spell cast by a Cleric.
• Favored Class: Fighter
• Barred Class: Cleric (A Rastek is cursed by the Gods, and thus cannot be a conduit for a God's power)
Comments and criticism is appreciated, guys. Basically I was going for an Undead race which was still viable as a PC race, as well as being something quite different from an underpowered vampire or other standard undead.
Servants of the Gods
In the pantheon of Erathe's gods, there is a layer of existence which seperates the realm of the gods from the realm of mortals. This layer of existence is home to the Ras, a race of spirit beings who serve the gods. In the language they speak, "Ras" is the word for underling, though the word is generally interpreted to mean "trusted servant".
Not all Ras please their masters. In an existence filled with hundreds of thousands of souls serving a scant few masters, there are those who displease the gods. They are tossed aside and cursed to walk Erathe. They become the Rastek.
The Rastek Curse
The Rastek name is derived, in part, from the name of the race which spawned them, the Ras. Tek is the word for "soiled", so the literal interpretation of the Rastek title could be taken as Soiled Underling, though the word carries a darker meaning only hinted at in ancient tomes buried around Erathe.
The Rastek are not quite undead, but not quite living. Their bodies are dead, by all accounts. They can be turned by the will of a powerful good Cleric, or controlled by an evil Necromancer. However, they cannot be destroyed by goodly spells and they possess a spark of intelligence and even a respect for life. Some compare them more to golems than the zombies they appear to be, but this is unfortunately not the case.
Partial-Dead
A Rastek, simply put, is the still-living soul of the servants of the gods, cast into the dead body of the most recent person to die. The Rastek will bear the face and form of a former human person, though they will quickly grow the three goat's horns which mark them for what they are. With time, the hair of the body they inhabit will slowly become black and matted, and the eyes of the corpse will soon glow with a hellish yellow light.
The power of the Ras soul contained in the body grants the body a certain amount of life and protection, though this mostly allows the Ras soul to move the Rastek body.
Rastek in Human Society
Most Rastek are treated with pity, although should the Rastek encounter the loved ones who used to know the body it is currently occupying, it will quite often be treated with violence and hatred. A Rastek can expect to be tolerated in most large villages or cities, although small villages may be closed to it. A Rastek will be recognized as a former servant of the gods and is thus treated with some measure of respect by the clergy, though this will, for the most part, extend to pleasantries and nothing more.
Rastek Adventurers
Often the Rastek will have been assigned a specific task by the god which cast it out, and thus the Rastek must journey to complete this task before it will be allowed to return to it's native plane and resume it's former life. Some Rastek, however, are given no task and are doomed to wander Erathe forever.
Rastek Game Rule Information
Medium Undead
• Strength +2, Dex+2, Int-2: Rastek are powerful and quite agile, but due to their state of undeath their ability to think is impaired.
• Con -: As a partial undead, a Rastek possesses no constitution score.
• Base Land Speed of 30 feet
• Automatic Languages: Common, Celestial. Bonus Languages: Any
• Darkvision 60 feet
• Immunity to Sleep, Poison and Disease, though a Death effect can still rip the Rastek's spirit from it's animated body.
• Slowed Healing: Unlike other characters, a Rastek only regains 1/2 it's character level in HP after an 8-hour period of non-activity. Likewise, a Rastek will not be destroyed simply by reducing it's HP to 0.
• Rastek do not require sleep, although they must stop all movement for eight hours to gain the benefits of a night's healing. During this time they are fully aware of their surroundings.
• Feels No Pain(Ex): A Rastek gains a +2 Bonus to any rolls it makes for it's HD, and is immune to to non-lethal damage.
• Unlike a normal Undead, a Rastek can suffer the effects of a critical hit or Sneak Attack damage, as well as ability drain and energy drain.
• Unlike a normal Undead, a Rastek can be healed by Positive Energy as well as negative energy due to the spirit residing within them. Being healed in such a manner stuns (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/conditionSummary.htm#stunned) the Rastek for a number of rounds equal to the level of the spell cast to heal it.
• Natural Weapons: A Rastek may use the horns on it's head in place of any weapon it is wielding to make a Slam attack dealing 1d6+STR damage.
• A Rastek is Vulnerable to any weapon which is Holy, or has been Blessed.
• Turning Resistance (Su): The Ras soul affords the Rastek a measure of resistance against attempts to drive it away with divine power. Any Cleric making a turn attempt against a Rastek is treated as being 5 levels lower.
• Divine Weakness: The Ras, being damned by the Gods, is vulnerable to god-granted magic. It takes a -2 penalty to any save made versus a Divine spell cast by a Cleric.
• Favored Class: Fighter
• Barred Class: Cleric (A Rastek is cursed by the Gods, and thus cannot be a conduit for a God's power)
Comments and criticism is appreciated, guys. Basically I was going for an Undead race which was still viable as a PC race, as well as being something quite different from an underpowered vampire or other standard undead.