[d20r, Race] Russiti v2.0

[Fax Celestis]

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Russiti are treelike, plant-based creatures. Unlike a great number of intelligent or sentient plants, russiti have developed complex neural networks and are capable of not just higher thought, but psionic powers.

Personality: Being plant-based, russiti tend to think differently from other creatures. They tend to look more towards the larger picture and show more concern for the environment than most other races.

Physical Description: Russiti appear, in most respects, as a small tree.

A russiti walks using a series of short, rootlike legs that merge into the trunk of the russiti seven to ten inches off the ground. The trunk itself is about eight to twelve inches in diameter and is covered in a thin layer of bark. Two opposable and jointed branches extend from the trunk, one on each side, about four feet from the ground, and just atop their extension point rests a series of knots and gnowls that form something of a face. Extending from the top of this mass of knots are several leafy branches.

The face itself contains two amber-colored eyes and a mouth: there is no nose, since scent input comes from the leafy branches over the head.

Alignment: Russiti tend towards good and neutrality, though there are russiti of all alignments.

Religion: Due to their plantlike nature, most russiti worship nature gods or goddesses.

Language: Russiti speak Sylvan and Common. Some learn Terran or Auran.

• -2 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, +2 Intelligence, -2 Charisma. Russiti are tough and smart, but do not move as quickly as other creatures.
• Medium: As Medium creatures, russiti have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
• Sentient Plant: Russiti are Plants with the (Sentient Plant) subtype. As such, they are not subject to spells or effects that affect humanoids only, such as charm person or dominate person. They are, however, susceptible to spells and effects that specifically target plants.
  
  Unlike normal plants, sentient plants are susceptible to mind-affecting effects, poison, paralysis, polymorph, stunning, and critical hits. They are still invulnerable to sleep effects, and eat, sleep and breathe just as humanoids do--though their method of acquiring such substances may differ from that of other humanoids.
• Russiti base land speed is 20 feet.
• Low-Light Vision
• Bark: Russiti's natural barklike skin grants a +1 natural bonus to Armor Class. This increases by +1 every five levels (to +2 at 5th, +3 at 10th, +4 at 15th, and +5 at 20th).
• Vulnerability to Fire: Due to their treelike nature, russiti take an additional point of damage per die from fire damage.
• Inborn Psionics: A russiti has a small pool of psionic charges they may tap into daily. A russiti has one charge per three class levels, minimum one. A charge may be spent to activate one of the following psi-like abilities or to power a feat with the [Russiti] descriptor: arboral empathy, detect psionics, know direction and location. Manifester level is equal to the russiti's character level.
• Naturally Psionic: A russiti gets 1 bonus power point at 1st level, plus one additional bonus power point per three levels (to 2 total bonus power points at 3rd, 3 at 6th, 4 at 9th, 5 at 12th, 6 at 15th, and 7 at 18th). This benefit does not grant them the ability to manifest powers unless they gain that ability through another source, such as levels in a psionic class.
• Automatic languages: Sylvan, Common. Bonus Languages: Aquan, Auran, Elven, Terran.
• Favored Class: Psion

[The Rose Dragon]

The pictured creature doesn't look very... medium-sized?

[Lappy9000]

The pictured creature doesn't look very... medium-sized?

It's clearly a pixie. Possibly a nixie. Maybe a grig.

I'm just glad to have a picture and a lack of a level adjustment. Noice work.

[The Rose Dragon]

Actually, that really looks like a brownie.

I want brownies as a player race in d20r now.

[Limos]

That is the same picture the 4e monster manual uses for Treants.

Perhaps this?



Or this?

[Fax Celestis]

That lower one is more what I was envisioning. *updates*

[The Rose Dragon]

Still, can wii haz brownies as a PC race?

[Fax Celestis]

Still, can wii haz brownies as a PC race?

Possibly. I'll put it in the Creature Queue.

[MammonAzrael]

• The stats and size look good.
• I like the work around you did for the plant type.
• The speed and vision look fine. One thought that occured to me is how many races are going to wind up with "normal" vision? I know this was something 4e changed, making special vision rarer, and I liked it. How rare do you think special vision should be? Hmm, on the note of vision, it might be cool if they could not move for a round and burrow their "legs" into the ground to gain a resistance to bull-rush/trip and tremorsense.
• The Natural Armor works, but have you thought about having it scale in level like Lizardfolk? This would help consolidate race "mechanics," and make everything feel more streamlined. In a flavor regard, it can be represented by the Russiti growing older, and their bark growing thicker and tougher.
• I really like the style of vulnerability you have going. Will other PC races being seeing their own types of vulnerability?
• Inborn Psionics, language, and favored class all look fine.
• I don't have any experience with psionics, so I don't know how powerful this would be but how would you feel about their Naturally Psionic pool increasing as they gain levels, to help keep it relevant at later levels?
• Since your other two "charge" racial abilities are Natural Talent and Natural Magic, wouldn't it make more sense to call Inborn Psionics Natural Psionics instead? And then change Naturally Psionic to Inborn Psionics?

Overall, well translated, and I'm happy to see you avoided that LA so perfectly.

[Icewalker]

I like it. Very cool. You've been doing really impressive stuff with d20r, and this is no exception. Looks balanced.

[Fax Celestis]

[*]The speed and vision look fine. One thought that occured to me is how many races are going to wind up with "normal" vision? I know this was something 4e changed, making special vision rarer, and I liked it. How rare do you think special vision should be?

Not special. In my opinion, most PC races should have some sort of increased senses (Keen Senses, Low Light Vision, Darkvision, Scent, etc.). Not more than once at a time, though.

Hmm, on the note of vision, it might be cool if they could not move for a round and burrow their "legs" into the ground to gain a resistance to bull-rush/trip and tremorsense.

That's actually one of their racial feats.

[*]The Natural Armor works, but have you thought about having it scale in level like Lizardfolk? This would help consolidate race "mechanics," and make everything feel more streamlined. In a flavor regard, it can be represented by the Russiti growing older, and their bark growing thicker and tougher.

Good point. I'll move it down a step and give it a slower rate than the lizardfolk.

[*]I really like the style of vulnerability you have going. Will other PC races being seeing their own types of vulnerability?

I think I'm going to stick with this kind of vulnerability, rather than have it be a flat +50%, as it allows me to scale it directly. I'm considering the same format for resistance as well, for the same reason.

[*]I don't have any experience with psionics, so I don't know how powerful this would be but how would you feel about their Naturally Psionic pool increasing as they gain levels, to help keep it relevant at later levels?

A possibility, esp. if I knock the NA down a bit.

[*]Since your other two "charge" racial abilities are Natural Talent and Natural Magic, wouldn't it make more sense to call Inborn Psionics Natural Psionics instead? And then change Naturally Psionic to Inborn Psionics?

I could, but I don't really want to.

[Eldrys]

They are still invulnerable to sleep effects, and eat, sleep and breathe just as humanoids do--though their method of acquiring such substances may differ from that of other humanoids.

This is confusing. Did you mean But instead of And next to eat