Amazons

[Tequila Sunrise]

I'm a little surprised that nobody has ever created a female-centric race. I realize that most d&d gamers play in 'modern psychologized' campaigns where nobody blinks an eye at a woman wearing pants and swinging a sword. I'm just a little surprise that nobody has yet capitalized on that small population of gamers that would be attracted to a Wonderwoman/Lara Croft/Sara Pezzini/Xena type of 'femheroine'.

Anyway, I'm adding a few races for my next homebrew and the amazon is one of them:

Amazons are a race composed entirely of coal skinned females. A typical amazon stands 6’ 6” tall and weighs 120 pounds; lithe and shapely, amazons possess legendary beauty. An amazon is like a cat in many ways; wily, fickle, self-confident and self-sufficient. The amazonian homeland is Amazon, a land of thick wet jungle where these warrior-women rule supreme. While there are amazon village-ports on the coast of their land, most amazons prefer to live in the wild to hunt, gather and trade for their livelihoods. For the first time at puberty, and every few years afterward, an amazon feels the urge to travel outside of her homeland to mate with some comely male usually of the human or selkie variety. Immediately after mating, she feels drawn inexorably back to Amazon where she bears a pair of twins. One is always a male of the father’s species, while the other is always a female amazon. The male children are immediately sent back to their father’s homeland, though rumor persists that many of these male children are left to die, burned or even eaten by their mothers.

• Typical Alignment: Chaotic Neutral.
• +2 Dexterity, -2 Intelligence, -2 Charisma.
• Medium.
• Base speed 40 feet.
• Low-light Vision.
• +2 racial bonus on Listen and Spot checks.
• Automatic Languages: Common and Amazonian.
• Favored Class: Ranger.

 

[Sound of Azure]

I think that they're trying to avoid stereotyping, or anti-stereotyping. then again, there are the Drow.

On a related note, I can't say I've seen any Prestige Classes that are exclusively male, yet there are a number that require the character to be female.

Weird, huh?

---
As for the race, they seem a little weak, actually. If you removed one of the ability penalties, it woul be ok IMO. You could also add an extra bonus (perhaps Wisdom?).
I'd go with something flavoursome instead.

Perhaps one (or more) of the following:
-Proficiency with Bows (like an elf) and Spears.
-Treat certain exotic weapons as Martial (something campaign specific)
-a racial bonus on attack rolls with a society-specific weapon
-a racial enemy bonus (either an +1 attack bonus, or a +2(+4?) dodge bonus against them... perhaps they could choose one or the other, with a feat to acquire the second)

anyway, nice flavour! Good luck with your campaign.

 

[Lokar]

A typical amazon stands 6’ 6” tall and weighs 120 pounds; lithe and shapely, amazons possess legendary beauty. An amazon is like a cat in many ways; wily, fickle, self-confident and self-sufficient.

• +2 Dexterity, -2 Intelligence, -2 Charisma.

Now I realize that Charisma isn't all about ones physical attraction, however nothing in your initial description really leads me to believe they would lack a force of personality, and at the very least the fact that they "posess legendayr beauty" would make me lean more twoards a +2 to charisma then a -2. Rumors are great, but I mean rumor has it that a vampire sucks the blood of the living, and they still have pretty great charisma

Otherwise they look decent to me.

40ft base move is always fun (Im a movement junkie)

Lowlight vision is fun also

+2 to hide and listen, a race of people who live in the jungle making surviving through hunting skill and what not, heck yeah, might even throw in a survival bonus to boot.

Now i'm with Sound of Azure on this, the race does seem a bit underpowered to me. Though I don't like the idea of giving it even more ranger related bonuses. You want to avoid the "everyone would rather play raceX rangers over raceY rangers thing.

On that note I like the idea of exotic weapons as martial weapons (yay flavor!) for a race. That's something that might be worth looking into.

Unfortinatly Im not to great at race design or I would offer a few more suggestions.

on a final note!

Looks good keep up the good work!

 

[reel_big_gish]

Cutting off the left breast so as to not interfere with you bow probably has something to do with it

 

[Tequila Sunrise]

I think that they're trying to avoid stereotyping, or anti-stereotyping. then again, there are the Drow.

On a related note, I can't say I've seen any Prestige Classes that are exclusively male, yet there are a number that require the character to be female.

Weird, huh?

---
As for the race, they seem a little weak, actually. If you removed one of the ability penalties, it woul be ok IMO. You could also add an extra bonus (perhaps Wisdom?).
I'd go with something flavoursome instead.

Perhaps one (or more) of the following:
-Proficiency with Bows (like an elf) and Spears.
-Treat certain exotic weapons as Martial (something campaign specific)
-a racial bonus on attack rolls with a society-specific weapon
-a racial enemy bonus (either an +1 attack bonus, or a +2(+4?) dodge bonus against them... perhaps they could choose one or the other, with a feat to acquire the second)

anyway, nice flavour! Good luck with your campaign.

Thanks! Yeah there are a couple female-centric PrCs, which is why I find it strange that the same isn't true of races. The reason that there is nothing male-centric is because nobody has a psychological desire to escape a female-dominated culture, real or fantastic.

I wouldn't mind adding a miscellaneous bonus or two, but Dexterity is too good a score to balanace evenly against a mental stat on a 1 for 1 basis. And no drow do not exist in my world. If anyone is really bent on playing a Drizzt clone they can be an elf with the [evil] aligned template who has turned away from his evil side...or just suck it up and try something new!

 

[Tequila Sunrise]

Now I realize that Charisma isn't all about ones physical attraction, however nothing in your initial description really leads me to believe they would lack a force of personality, and at the very least the fact that they "posess legendayr beauty" would make me lean more twoards a +2 to charisma then a -2. Rumors are great, but I mean rumor has it that a vampire sucks the blood of the living, and they still have pretty great charisma

The reason for the -2 Cha is that amazons are just too self concerned generally to be really likeable. The rumors weren't meant to have anything to do with the ability mods; it's just something that I figured would naturally happen as a result of the amazons' exotic nature and cultural isolation.

 

[Tequila Sunrise]

Cutting off the left breast so as to not interfere with you bow probably has something to do with it

Haha you noticed that! That was an actual practice of a group of warrior-women somewhere in central-northern Asia.

 

[Chimera]

I guess I just don't see the need for them to be a completely new and separate race. I'm tired of more, more, more races.

I have an Amazon 'nation' in my current campaign region. Probable population is only 700-800, but the control a pretty good sized territory. A good percentage of them are Rangers and Druids, with a small but growing percentage of arcane casters.

They have a decent relationship with a nearby river town, mainly due to the High Priest(ess) of the God/dess of Wisdom who is based there. Every spring at the town faire, the Amazons come down to trade and to surrender their 3-year old male children, who with the help of the Temple of Wisdom, are adopted into local families.

 

[Dog Moon]

Shouldn't they simply be Humans of a different culture?

Out of curiosity, why do they need to be an entirely new race? Perhaps turn some of those abilities into racial/regional feats.

Like [For example]:

Amazonian Speed
While some cultures rely on animals to hunt, Amazons tend to hunt without such help and are quicker because of it.
Prerequisite: Amazon Region
Effect: Your speed increases by +10 feet.

 

[Sound of Azure]

Thanks! Yeah there are a couple female-centric PrCs, which is why I find it strange that the same isn't true of races.

Yeah, that's what I thought. I happen to agree with you, now that I've actually thought about it. I may have to inject a female-centric culture into my homebrew that I'm.... brewing right now. Not a seperate race, since there are pretty much only humans.

The reason that there is nothing male-centric is because nobody has a psychological desire to escape a female-dominated culture, real or fantastic.

That's possible. I'll take that with a grain of salt, though. Wouldn't want to get in trouble in my female dominated household.

I wouldn't mind adding a miscellaneous bonus or two, but Dexterity is too good a score to balanace evenly against a mental stat on a 1 for 1 basis.

Hey, it's your race after all. After some discussion with friends I've come to the conclusion that the ability scores are what you make of them. Dexterity is pretty strong though, as you say.
Personally, I'd go with the Exotic Weapon prof becoming Martial, so it really helps the rangers and warriors of their culture, but not other kinds of characters.
Also, since they are hunters, a dodge bonus against animals would be excellent.

And no drow do not exist in my world. If anyone is really bent on playing a Drizzt clone they can be an elf with the [evil] aligned template who has turned away from his evil side...or just suck it up and try something new!

Heh. I'm going to do something like this when I run City of the Spider Queen. Cthulhu-esque drow from the depths of the earth unleashed on world that has never known such things! I'm not sure the players will even recognise them!

Anyhow, have fun with them!