Ursaren: The Panda Folk of Shou Lung [PEACH]

[bunnynoah]

Ursaren (Panda Folk)

Spoiler: Ursaren

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Deep within the mountainous regions of the East, small communities reside between the misty valleys and bamboo forests of Shou Lung. The residents of these villages are the Ursaren. These "panda folk" prefer peace over violence, but are more than capable of defending their homes and families from danger.

Ursaren usually live simple lives as farmers or fishermen, rarely leaving the places they were born. Some, however, become great monks of Shou monasteries. Seeing a Ursaren in a place as far as Faerun is rare, but plausible. Those who do travel will often see as much of the world as they can before their years catch them.

Ursaren are covered in thick, soft fur that is white with either black, brown, red, or grey accents, in addition to raccoon-like tails. They usually have glowing blue or green eyes, and are surprisingly nimble for being so fat.

Names: (Male) An, Chen, Chi, Fai, Jiang, Jun, Lian, Long, Meng, On, Shan, Shui, Wen; (Female) Bai, Chao, Jia, Lei, Mei, Qiao, Thui, Tai; (Surnames) Chien, Huang, Kao, Kung, Lao, Ling, Mei, Pin, Shin, Sum, Tan, Wan

Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution, Dexterity, and Wisdom Increases by 1.
Age. Ursaren reach maturity faster than humans, at 10 years. They do, however, live much longer with the oldest living to 200 years.
Alignment. An Ursaren usually is neutral with lawful leanings.
Size. Ursaren are between 7 to 8 feet tall and weigh between 310 to 520 pounds. Your size is medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30. Ursaren can also run on all four legs which increases their speed to 40 feet if their hands are empty.
Epicurean. You gain proficiency with the artisan’s tools of your choice: Brewer’s Supplies or Cook’s Utensils.
Keen Senses. You are proficient in the Perception skill.
Powerful Build. You count as one size larger when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push, drag, or lift.
Extraordinary Healing. When you spend hit dice to heal hit points in a short or long rest, you add your constitution modifier twice instead of once.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write common and one extra language of your choice.

[bunnynoah]

Any suggestions whatsoever?

[LoneStarNorth]

As they are right now, I'd say they're just slightly underpowered. I would buff the movement speed ability to say they have a speed of 40 feet when their hands are empty, without otherwise limiting it. You could probably throw another skill or tool proficiency in as well.

[bunnynoah]

I buffed the movement speed and added keen senses.

[nickl_2000]

I buffed the movement speed and added keen senses.

I feel way better about this race now. Previously something just felt off about the race and didn't illicit the excitement that I wanted.

The changes, however, have made a huge difference. This race just begs a Monk class and would be something I would be interested in playing.

[bunnynoah]

I actually wanted it to be a decent race for monks, basing it off of the Pandaren and Po from Kung Fu Panda.

[LordFluffy]

Why darkvision?

[bunnynoah]

Why darkvision?

Um, because it's a beast race?

[nickl_2000]

I actually wanted it to be a decent race for monks, basing it off of the Pandaren and Po from Kung Fu Panda.

The only thing I struggle with is the competition of AC calculations, but no race is perfect :)

Why darkvision?

Because Pandas can see in the dark like cats

[LordFluffy]

Um, because it's a beast race?

And? Pandas aren't renowned for their nightvision. It just seems out of place.

I counted this up using this guy's race creation guide. It scored a 7, which makes on the high end of balanced, by his measure.

Personally, I think it's OK mechanically, just not anything that jumps out at me as unique, so much as some pretty good features from other races bound up together. As a GM, I wouldn't say no to this in my game, but as a player I'm not sure I'd want to play this because "Hey, panda race" so much as "Hey, this mechanically allows me to do a thing".

I do like the +1 to three separate stats. Perception feels right, the movement yes, the natural armor less so. I think the darkvision doesn't belong and Acrobatics seems tacked on, emulating an aspect of a particular character rather than what I'd expect a humanoid panda to be. I'd be more inclined to give them accelerated healing of some sort.

Cool entry none the less. Thanks for sharing.

[bunnynoah]

I use James' guide as well. Thank you for the insight, I'll see about changing the natural armor to a healing aspect or something similar. I'll also consider removing darkvision.

[bunnynoah]

I think it looks good now, but I'm still uncertain.