A few homebrewed and "fixed" races I need people to look at

[ThorneMD]

Okay, I've recently decided to work on my homebrew again. However, I want to know if any of my homebrew and "fixed" races are balanced and what other people think of them. Any help with these is appreciated.

First up are Saiyans. Yes like in DBZ, but I wanted to make them as playable a race a possible.

Saiyan Racial Traits
· ECL +2: Saiyan have great amounts of power and so are ECL of +2
· +2 Strength, +2 Dex, -2 Wis
· Medium Sized: As medium sized creatures, Saiyans have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
· Saiyan base speed is 40 feet.
· Saiyans who do not get their tails cut of at a young age suffer a great weakness whenever their tail is grabbed or crushed. Whenever a sayians tail is grabbed or crushed they become paralyzed for 2d4 rounds.
· Natural gift for Fighting (Ex): Saiyans have a natural gift for fighting and are able to fight unarmed with great ease. Thus, they all Saiyans are considered to be armed and are considered armed thus granting him the benefits of the Improved Unarmed Strike Feat.
· A Saiyan may also enter a Super Saiyan mode. There are three known levels, but there is a rumor of a forth level.
· A Saiyan can transform into a Super Saiyan only at a certain level

• Super Saiyan – 10th level

• Super Saiyan II – 15th level

• Super Saiyan III – 20th level

o Super Saiyan I (Su): When a Saiyan goes Super Saiyan, his hair turns gold and spikes up in a thick manner. Additionally, the color of their eyes changes to a deep glossy sky blue and he becomes surrounded by a golden aura. This force of a Super Saiyan power is so great that it cannot be concealed, hidden, or disguised in any way. The first transformation takes 5 rounds (30 seconds). Any subsequent transformation requires a move-equivalent action.

o Super Saiyan II (Su): In addition to the changes of Super Saiyan I, the Super Saiyans hair spikes up even more, although it becomes a bit thinner than before. Additionally, a harmless field of electricity surrounds a Super Saiyan. The first transformation takes 10 rounds (1 minute). Any subsequent transformation requires a full-round action.

o Super Saiyan III (Su): In addition to the changes of Super Saiyan II, the Super Saiyans hair grows out thick and to a length equal to half the Saiyan's height. Additionally, their eyes glow and their eyebrows disappear, giving the Super Saiyan 3 a barbaric or villainous look. The first transformation takes 15 rounds (1 minute and 30 seconds), while any subsequent transformation requires three rounds.

· The following changes apply each time a Saiyan goes Super Saiyan
o Base Speed:

• Super Saiyan (I) x2

• Super Saiyan (II) x4

• Super Saiyan (III) x6

o AC: All Super Saiyans gain a deflection bonus to their AC equal to their new Dex bonus (if any).

o Abilities:

• Super Saiyan

· Str +8
· Dex +2
· Con +4

• Super Saiyan 2

· Str +16
· Dex +4
· Con +8

• Super Saiyan 3

· Str +24
· Dex +6
· Con +12

· Whenever a Saiyan goes Super Saiyan, he takes a form of non-lethal damage due to the immense amount of power and stress involved in remaining in the form, that is recorded separately, and does not actually count towards any real non-lethal damage. Whenever the non-lethal damage would normally drop the Saiyan, he does not fall unconscious, but instead must drop his Super Saiyan mode, and revert back to his norm.

• A Super Saiyan 1 receives 1d6 points of non-lethal damage per round that he remains as a Super Saiyan.

• A Super Saiyan 2 receives 4d6 points of non-lethal damage per round that he remains as a Super Saiyan 2.

• A Super Saiyan 3 receives 6d6 points of non-lethal damage per round.

· Note: Whenever a Super Saiyan actually loses consciousness; not through his power upkeep; he automatically reverts back to his original form. Additionally, if a Super Saiyan receives enough damage in a single hit to reduce his hit points by 50% of his maximum, he must make a Fortitude save (DC 10 + damage dealt) or revert back to his normal form.






On a side note with Saiyans, I was thinking of adding a little natural spell-like ability that in order to attack the Saiyan as he is transforming the opponent must succeed in a Will Save of some DC due to the immense amount of energy, but am not sure if I should.

 

[ThorneMD]

My World's Orcs

My orcs are kindof loosely based on the orcs of Morrowind now. Still feared, but more civilized.

Orc Racial Traits
- +4 Str, -2 Wis
- Orc base speed is 30 feet
- Darkvision 60 feet
- +2 on Craft (armor) and Craft (weapons)
- Weapon group proficiency in Axes and the Orc Double Axe, or in Picks and Hammers.
- Gorg Legbreaker grants his race the following benefits: (Homebrew God of Orcs)

• Fighters and Barbarians either +2 Str or +2 Dex

• Wizards and Experts gains +2 Int

• Clerics and Druids gains +2 Wis

• Sorcerers and bards gain +2 Cha

• Rogues gain +2 Dex

 

[ThorneMD]

Irda

These guys are basically an ultimate mage type.

Irda Racial Traits
· + 4 Intelligence, +2 Charisma- 2 Strength, - 2 Constitution. Irda are highly respected mages, but are weak in physical combat.
· Medium-Size: As medium-sized characters, Irda have no special bonuses or penalties due to size.
· Bonus Feat: Irda gain the feat “Spellcaster Prodigy” as a bonus feat at level 1. They may only use this feat in an arcane spellcaster class.
· Darkvision: Irda have darkvision up to 60 feet.
· +2 racial bonus on Spellcraft and Knowledge (Arcana) checks. Irda are highly skilled in the use of scrolls and other magical material.
· Irda may cast Detect Magic three times a day.
· Automatic Languages: Irdian. Bonus Languages: Any
· Favoured Class: Wizard
· Level Adjustment +1: An Irda is slightly more powerful then the standard races and gain levels a more slowly then other characters.

 

[ThorneMD]

Ktlann

A seafaring cat-people that are fearful of mages, but have recently formed an alliance with the Irda.

Racial Ability Traits
- +2 Str, +2 Dex, -2 Chr, -2 Con
- Medium-size: As medium-size creatures, K’T’Lann have no special bonuses or penalties do to their size.
- K’T’Lann base speed is 30 feet.
- Low Light Vision 60 feet
- +2 racial bonus to Spot, Listen, Search, Jump and Move Silently
- +2 racial bonus to Profession (Sailor) and Profession (Shipbuilder)
- +1 attack bonus to Scimitar and Falchions, which are hereditary weapons.
- Favored Class: Paladin
- The K’T’Lann use the same age progression as half-elves.

 

[ThorneMD]

Wulfen

Think Gnolls, but wolves instead.

Wulfen Racial Traits
- +2 Constitution, -2 Intelligence
- Medium-Size: As medium-size creatures, wulfens have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
- Wulfens base speed is 30 feet.
- Although Wulfen are Medium creatures, due to the fact that their bodies are vastly different them most, their armor must be personally made for them.
- Low-Light Vision: A wulfen can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. It retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
- Natural Weapons: Wulfens can make a bite attack which deals 1d4 + Str. modifier in damage.
- +2 racial bonus to Listen checks, wulfens can hear precisely
- +2 racial bonus to Survival checks, wulfen are naturally from the wild.
- +2 racial bonus to Handle Animal checks with any canine creature (Wolves, Dogs, Foxes, Blink Dogs)
- Limited Scent: A wulfen can detect opponents within 5 feet by sense of smell. If the opponent is upwind, the range increases to 10 feet; if downwind, it drops to 0 feet. Otherwise this scent ability is exactly like that which is presented in the DMG. Wulfens tracking by scent ignore the effects of surface conditions and poor visibility.
- Automatic Languages: Wulfen
- Favored Class: Ranger. A multiclass wulfen's ranger class does not count when determining whether it takes an XP penalty.
- ECL: +1

 

[ThorneMD]

Half-Orc

My version of the Half-Orc.

Half-Orc Racial Traits
- Ability Adjustments: +2 Strength, –2 Charisma
- Medium: As Medium creatures, half-orcs have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
- Base Speed: 30 feet.
- Darkvision: Half-orcs can see in the dark up to 60 feet. Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and half-orcs can function just fine with no light at all.
- Orc Blood: For all effects related to race, a half-orc is considered an orc.
- Racial Skill Bonuses: +2 racial bonus on Intimidate and Sense Motive checks: Half-orcs are not readily accepted among any race; Half-orcs must quickly learn how to identify allies and discourage challengers in order to survive.
- Bonus Feat: Half-Orcs receive the Toughness feat for free at first level.
- Weapon Familiarity: Half-orcs starts with weapon proficiency in axes and in the Orc Double Axe.
- Favored Class: Any. When determining whether a multiclassed half-orc takes an experience penalty, her highest-level class does not count.

 

[maggot]

My orcs are kindof loosely based on the orcs of Morrowind now. Still feared, but more civilized.

Orc Racial Traits
- +4 Str, -2 Wis
- Orc base speed is 30 feet
- Darkvision 60 feet
- +2 on Craft (armor) and Craft (weapons)
- Weapon group proficiency in Axes and the Orc Double Axe, or in Picks and Hammers.
- Gorg Legbreaker grants his race the following benefits: (Homebrew God of Orcs)

• Fighters and Barbarians either +2 Str or +2 Dex

• Wizards and Experts gains +2 Int

• Clerics and Druids gains +2 Wis

• Sorcerers and bards gain +2 Cha

• Rogues gain +2 Dex

So an Orc barbarian has a total of +6 str, -2 wis; and an Orc Cleric has a total of +4 str? Seems pretty darn powerful, at least an LA +1 race. Or am I missing something?

 

[Kularian]

Saiyans: I like the idea, and it does work well, but here are a few things that you should think about incorporating:

A saiyan who is of 10th level is able to achieve the Super Saiyan status, but he cannot do so until he is under extreme emotional/physical stress. Rarely does a saiyan attain this power, so it is something to be coveted. (DM discretion to whether or not a character achieves this power.)

Likewise with SSJ2 and SSJ3.

Also, I would rule that the bonuses gained from going SSJ or beyond do not stack with any other bonus the character has. If a Saiyan is raging (+4 Str), and has a belt of giant strength +6, then decides to go SSJ, his increased strength is still +10, not +18 from SSJ. That can make for an overly powerful character very quickly. Likewise, at SSJ2, the Strength increase is only 16, not 26.

If you place those restrictions on the Saiyan, it might pass for LA +2.

Orcs: I agree w/ Maggot. Not really certain what the Bonus stats are for, some explanation would help some, hehe. Otherwise, definitely a LA +1 race.

Irda: As in, from the DragonLance novels? Hehehe. They seem fine to me, though.

K'T'Lann: Works for me. It's good to see love for the Scimitar & Falchion, ^^

Wulfen: I almost don't know if they get the LA +1. That specially made armor bit is quite restrictive, and makes all armor that much more expensive. They do get a bite attack and Limited scent, though. I could see either case, but I guess a light-armored Wulfen is kind of at an advantage then. (Hooray for wolfies!)

Half-Orc: More powerful than their SRD Bretheren, but not out of balance. Looks fine to me.

 

[Arkhandus]

Alright, my comments:

1. In general, I think some of the ideas you've posted here will probably turn away some folks thinking you're silly or juvenile, so don't get too discouraged for lack of many replies; mere mention of Dragonball Z is generally enough to drive away some folks. I am not one of those, but I have seen plenty of DBZ hate around the net. :\

2. Saiyans: I'll get back to these in a moment.

3. Orcs: Need to have a +1 Level Adjustment/ECL if using any of the Player's Handbook races as-written, as these orcs are much stronger by comparison to core races. Not so much stronger than dwarves, but still somewhat stronger than even them.

4. Irda: The Detect Magic bit should probably be clarified with regards to how it is cast; as per a wizard? As per a sorcerer? As per a bard? Or something else? And at what caster level?

5. K'T'Lann: They're a bit too strong compared to core races IMHO, so I'd give them something like a -2 penalty on Will saves against magic (or -1 penalty on all saves against magic), due in some part to their fear of mages (or perhaps an ancient root from which that fear sprang up).

6. Wulfen: These are a bit weak for their +1 Level Adjustment I feel, so I would give them the standard Scent quality instead of their lesser version, or I might boost their Constitution bonus up to +4 instead of +2. Maybe just double their racial skill bonuses and increase the bite attack to 1d6 base damage? I figure a Wulfen can get armor adjusted to fit them properly if they find some good armor along the way....like going to a mage to get some magic armor altered in shape to fit them properly, I suppose. Otherwise it may be a bit problematic, dunno. Oh, and a note: by the Monster Manual and SRD, any creature that normally has only a single natural weapon will add 1-1/2 times Strength bonus to damage with it, rather than just 1x Str bonus; just thought I should mention it, since I've noticed folks forget it occasionally.

7. Half-Orcs: Considering the feat, skill bonuses, proficiencies, and lack of Intelligence penalty, I'd say these are too strong for an LA +0 race unless you beefed up the other core races too. Maybe give them the same Wisdom penalty you give full-blooded orcs? Though even that wouldn't be quite enough.... Maybe you should just beef up the other core races a bit instead of modding the half-orc any further than you already have. Dunno. I assume the Charisma penalty has something to do with half-orcs being shunned or something as orc-related halfbreeds? Since your version of Orcs have no Cha penalty, I mean.

8. Saiyans: Now I'll get to commenting on these. Firstly, excluding the Super Saiyan part, I'd say they're only a minor or moderate Level Adjustment +1 in worth, so reduce the +2 to +1. Too much front-loaded weakness and slow progression, just for a set of benefits that never gets seen until middle and upper levels. Remove the Super Saiyan parts from the racial description, and transfer them over to a set of Special feats available exclusively to Saiyans. Like so:

Super Saiyan Transformation (Special)
Through trauma, rage, and many fierce battles, you have unlocked a mighty power from your Saiyan bloodline.
Prerequisites: Saiyan race, character level 9+, Constitution 15+, Charisma 15+, must have experienced a great trauma, DM's approval.
Benefits: You gain the ability to undergo a special transformation into a Super Saiyan, significantly increasing your power for a limited time. You may transform in this manner at will, but it takes some time and effort to do so, and can be quite draining.

Then just add your specific Super Saiyan details at that point. Make a separate feat for the level 2 transformation; Super Saiyan Ascendance perhaps, with the character level prerequisite increased to 15, and the additional prerequisite of already possessing the Super Saiyan Transformation feat; then make a third feat for the level 3 transformation; Super Saiyan Mastery, perhaps, with the level prerequisite increased to 18, and the additional prerequisite of already possessing Super Saiyan Ascendance; any potential fourth feat (Super Saiyan Primal Form maybe?) would be an epic feat for sure, probably requiring a character level of 24 or something. The Super Saiyan transformation could possibly be explained as a manifestation of ancestral gifts that were lost through some offense to the gods after a few generations, or somesuch.

I'm not going to read through and analyze what exact benefits and drawbacks you gave the Super Saiyan forms, but I would just suggest that if they're very potent without much drawback, then they should probably incur an increase to the character's racial Level Adjustment (with no effect on their current level, but definitely altering the amount of XP they would need henceforth to increase any further in level). For instance, if each transformation feat gives pretty significant benefits and little or no drawback, they might each increase the Saiyan's LA by +1 when obtained.

 

[ThorneMD]

Thanks for the comments guys. I major tid bit of information I forgot to mention is that I don't follow the DMG when it comes to gold, magic, and things like that. You can say I run a lower middle magic game. The players all still are aware of magic and its common place to see magic, but you don't neccessarily have the gold that the DMG says you should. Usually, my players are at least 20% under the DMG listed values for their levels, but no one has complained and actually they complain more when they get too much. Maybe I'm spoiled. Plus, item like Belt of Giant Strength +6 are rarely found. I think the highest strength item the party got in their recently finished campaign was a +4 and that was right before the final boss fight. They were level 12 by the way.

The Orcs:
I see where both of you are coming from and was worried about it too, but one of my players decided to play an orc fighter and instead of a +6 Str, he chose +4 Str, +2 Dex. Maybe I'm just spoiled with players who do not powergame too much.

The reason for the bonuses is mostly for the DM. My world's major baddies are Kobolds, Goblinoid tribes, Orcs, Undead, and a few others. I stick to them throughout and wanted to ensure that they pose a challenge even in the upper levels along with putting classes on them. But I'm fair and what I get is what the player's get. Plus I stole the idea from my brother's world where he does the same thing and we never complained when we fought the orcs. Can anyone suggest something to change them to stay at LA +0 but keep the god-given powers?

Also, one note I forgot to mention is that in order to get these bonuses the character must follow Gorg Legbreaker


The Saiyans:
Technically they get the power to go SS1 at 12th level thanks to LA, but I know what you mean about the emotional/physical stress. I thought about adding that, but then it would take away from the player's control of a character.

However, the one thing I was scared about you fixed, Kularian. I don't know why, but it never occured to me to make the bonus of going Super Saiyan unstackable. I hate when I'm just brain dead at moments.

Also, do you think that nonstackable idea should go for all their benefits in Super Saiyan form? Should their speed and deflection bonuses also be unstackable?

And finally, what about the side note for the Saiyans. Should I make them unapproachable unless the approaching person, ally or enemy, makes a save or some sorts to withstand the immense energy, or should I not care and allow the enemy to beat the Saiyan into oblivion when they are chaning? Makes little difference unless its the Saiyan's first time changing or in SS3, but good to know.

The Wulfens:
Does anyone think I should add something to them or take away the LA?

The Irda:
Not originally. I actually took the idea off another website and changed the race's look, personality, and everything except for the idea of being high magic.

The Half-Orc:
I just wanted to give my players and myself justification for playing a half-orc. Everyone of my players said that the standard half-orc is worthless unless they are a barbarian and not everyone likes to play the "standard barbarian half-orc" and not be underpowered.

Arkhandus you posted at around the same time I was typing. I'll look over and post my response to it tomorrow. Thanks for the advice guys.