Empyreals - Aasimar reworked

EMPYREAL
Descended from angels trapped on the earthly plane after the murder of their Deity during the great rebellion.
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Ability Scores: +2 Constitution, +2 Charisma
Size: Medium
Speed: 6 squares
Vision: Normal
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Languages: Common, Supernal
Skill Bonuses: +2 Diplomacy, +2 Perception
Angelic Aura: Attacks against you take a –1 penalty until you are bloodied.
Radiant Resistance: You have resist radiant 5 + one-half your level.
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EMPYREAL RACIAL POWERS

Radiant Blade
When you are bloodied your weapon flares with a cobalt light.
At Will ✦ Radiant
Minor Action (usable only while bloodied)
Target: One target
Attack: (Wisdom bonus) vs. Reflex
Hit: b +4 radiant damage until the start of your next turn.

Angelic Flare
A flash of cerulean light envelops your foes, leaving them dazed.
Encounter ✦ Radiant
Standard Action Close Burst 1
Target: Each foe in area of burst
Attack: (Wisdom bonus) vs. Fortitude
Effect: 1d8 radiant + (wisdom bonus) damage to all creatures in the burst area and they are dazed until the end of your next turn.
Miss: Half damage and the creatures are not dazed.

Celestial Sense
Your celestial nature gives your allies insight into your foes actions.
Encounter ✦
Minor Action Burst 5
Target: All allies in area
Effect: All allies in the 5 square burst area gain a +1 bonus to Perception.


EMPYREAL RACIAL FEATS

Angelic Heart: Your angelic heritage gives you immunity to the Fear effect.
Tier: Heroic

Resistance: you develop resistance 5 to a specific form of energy attack; this can be taken more than once for different types of energy attacks.
Tier: Heroic

Astral Trek: You are able to enter the Astral Sea, you gain the insubstantial condition until the end of your next turn
Tier: Paragon

Wings: you grow a pair of white feathered wings, Fly: Move +2 (Good)
Tier: Paragon
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Background
Descended from angels trapped on the earthly plane after the murder of their Deity during the great rebellion, Empyreals tend to live in small holdings in the towns and cities of the world.
Dying, they joined their essence with humans so that what their Master created would not be lost; their arrogance due to this spark of divine power causes other races to give then their space. However in times of upheaval or danger these are the beings that others look to for leadership or mediation.

Play an Empyreal if you want...
• to be someone your allies look to for leadership and inspiration.
• to be good at negotiating, motivating or reading others intentions.
• to be a member of a race that favors the paladin, cleric and warlord classes.

PHYSICAL QUALITIES
Average Height: 5’ 10”‐6’ 10”
Average Weight: 160 lbs‐260 lbs.
Empyreals’ bearing testify to their celestial heritage.
They have strong ascetic features, eyes with gold pupils, skin color ranges from pale to midnight blue and hair of lighter colors, blondes, reds, silver or sometimes black; light enough to form a cloud about their head when dry. They are generally tall and have a slender to athletic build.
Empyreals favor light colors and metallic cloth. Empyreal‐crafted arms and armor have a clean flowing style that matches their forthright nature.

Names: Empyreals are given names appropriate for the area and society in which they were raised. These are largely variations of the names their angelic forbearers and some human.
Male Names: Exarial, Henzion, Mortibal, Overmar, Senatalial, Vitarri, Orin, Alaric.
Female Names: Alleria, Ertri, Irethia, Marethial, Savial, Terimar, Alyssa, Ardath.

PLAYING AN EMPYREAL
When the angel Asmodeus rebelled against his master, the battles raged throughout the planes. At the death of the master a great curse befell the rebellious and they were thrust into the transformed dominion now ruled by Asmodeus called the Nine Hells. However the faithful were left scattered among the planes and without their master’s power to sustain them most died. Some however, found sanctuary amongst the races of these planes and merged their essence with them. Millennia pass and the divine essence stayed strong and bred true. These Empyreals keep the memory of their Master and so are predisposed to those classes that fight the usurpers of his realm. Since that time some have strayed from the path their Master set them upon and feel they should take the power they feel is rightfully theirs, they have attempted to create their own realm, these endeavors invariably failed.
The role of spiritual or military leader comes naturally; clerics, paladins and warlords are excellent choices for them. Warlocks making pacts with shadowy beings or Wizards and their tampering with magical energies are rare choices at best. While not numerous, empyreals often have small clan holdings in most large cities, some smaller cities and large towns.

Empyreal Characteristics: Cunning, aloof, imposing, mysterious, proud, imperious, self‐reliant, spiritual, diplomatic.


Open to suggestions on any aspect of the race.

Bel

It seems too close to their fiendish relatives. In a way that it would almost play the same. Take out the abilities that mimic those of the teifling and you've got yourself a good race. Overall, good job.

Thanks, thats one of the things I'm working on now, I can see what they meant in Races & Classes about making them different.

Bel

I think their stat bonuses should be +2 Str, +2 Wis. In the Planescape Monstrous Compendium II, their stats were +1 Str, +1 Wis, -2 Con. Personally speaking, I'd like to see them more like how they were when they came out. So +2 Str, +2 Wis. But that's just my personal preference.

Honestly, my first though about this race was "hmmm a super good race...how motivating" Given the nature of angels in 4e (almost mechanical servants of a gods will and purpose), it would be interesting if there were something about the nature (even in the fluff) that worked out to be a downside. An arrogance or tendency toward monomania or sociopathy based upon the a core belief that each of their actions is an expression of divine will.

They just seem too shiny right now.

And I agree that cold resist and righteous wrath need to go, replaced by something that doesn't scream "I'm the opposite of tiefling!"

DC

I'd be interested in an origin that was the devil's somewhat inverted. Angels to an extremely evil god desert the god after a particularly atrocious crime by the god. I would leave the god alive to provide plenty of potential conflict between the celestials descended from these rebellious (but good) angels and his still loyal (but highly evil) followers. It would also allow the devils to remain the only angels to have actually murdered their deity.

FourthBear said:

I'd be interested in an origin that was the devil's somewhat inverted. Angels to an extremely evil god desert the god after a particularly atrocious crime by the god. I would leave the god alive to provide plenty of potential conflict between the celestials descended from these rebellious (but good) angels and his still loyal (but highly evil) followers. It would also allow the devils to remain the only angels to have actually murdered their deity.

Click to expand...

There's this origin I wrote for a possible 4e aasimar:

When the dark angel Asmodeus and his Host rose up in rebellion and slew the deity they served, a small percentage of that deity's angels stayed true and fought the rebels. Although defeated, these noble celestials managed to escape before that celestial realm was cast down into the form of the Nine Hells. They took refuge within the mortal forms of devout followers of the deceased deity. From this mingling of mortal flesh and celestial spirit arose the armaitin ("devoted"). Devils have a particular hatred of the armaitin, seeing them as scions of their ancestral foes. It is whispered in some circles that whatever pacts gave birth to the tieflings was intended as a mockery of the armaitin.

Click to expand...

Incorperated some changes due to development and suggestions.

Bel

Added some fluff and another racial power.

PLAYING AN EMPYREAL
When the angel Asmodeus rebelled against his master, the battles raged throughout the planes. At the death of the master a great curse befell the rebellious and they were thrust into the transformed dominion now ruled by Asmodeus called the Nine Hells. However the faithful were left scattered among the planes and without their master’s power to sustain them most died. Some however, found sanctuary amongst the races of these planes and merged their essence with them. Millennia pass and the divine essence stayed strong and bred true. These Empyreals keep the memory of their Master and so are predisposed to those classes that fight the usurpers of his realm. Since that time some have strayed from the path their Master set them upon and feel they should take the power they feel is rightfully theirs, they have attempted to create their own realm, these endeavors invariably failed.
The role of spiritual or military leader comes naturally; clerics, paladins and warlords are excellent choices for them. Warlocks making pacts with shadowy beings or Wizards and their tampering with magical energies are rare choices at best. While not numerous, empyreals often have small clan holdings in most large cities, some smaller cities and large towns.

Empyreal Characteristics: Cunning, aloof, imposing, mysterious, proud, imperious, self‐reliant, spiritual, diplomatic.

SOUL LIGHT
A flash of cerulean light envelops your foes, leaving them dazed and weakened.
Encounter ✦ Radiant
Standard Action Close burst 5
Target: Each foe in burst
Attack: (Wisdom bonus) vs. Will
Effect: 1d6 radiant +(wisdom bonus) damage to all creatures in the burst area and they are slowed until the end of your next turn.
Miss: Half damage and creatures are not slowed.

Bel

empyreal Definition
em·pyr·eal (em pir′ē əl; em′pī rē′əl, -pə-)

adjective

of the empyrean; heavenly; sublime

Etymology: LL empyrius, empyreus < Gr empyrios, in fire < en, in + pyr, fire


Bel