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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Arkhandus" data-source="post: 1510625" data-attributes="member: 13966">Here's my comments, in blue, beneath your stuff.  Standard protoss traits : all protoss have these traits, except for the communion ability which dark templar lack. +2 Str, +2 Dex, -2 ConProtoss are powerful, graceful creatures but their bodies are not constructed to take heavy damage.***I recommend dropping the Dex/Con mods.  Protoss are somewhat larger than humans and couldn't be any less tough; besides, they were primitive warring tribes for an entire aeon!  They couldn't grow soft so quickly....  They may be a bit lanky, but they're tall and don't seem necessarily more agile than humans...*** Powerful Frame : Treated as a large creature for all puposes except reach, space, hide checks, attack roll penalties, and AC adjustments. As the half-giant ability of the same name from the XPH.Protoss are tall, lanky, and powerful, also able to manipulate their bodies to a limited degree to gain the most of their size without suffering the drawbacks of a bulkier creature their height. No mouth : Protoss do not have any orifices capable of ingestion so they must draw nutrients from the enviroment psionically. A protoss must maintain psionic focus for at least 16 out of every 24 hours in order to get enough nutrition for that day.***Note that they also seem to lack any sort of nose, so protoss should be immune to offensive scents since they cannot smell anything.  However, I think they do still need to breathe, so I suppose they have some sort of hidden gills or tiny breathing orifices somewhere on their bodies.  Another note, if used in a D&D type of setting, protoss should be able to absorb potion liquid through their pores perhaps, though it may take an extra full-round action in such a case, being less efficient than gulping it down a throat.*** Psionic Meditation as a bonus feat at 1st level. Telepathy : Protoss cannot communicate verbally. They may use sign languages or writing normally, but to communicate quickly they employ a one-way telepathy that extends out to 60 ft away. A protoss and the other creature must still share a language to understand eachother.***Probably important to note that all protoss have Protoss as an automatic racial language, and that it has only written and mental components, unable to be pronounced with spoken sounds.  They should be able to choose languages like Terran and Zerg as bonus languages for high Intelligence, and many protoss that go anywhere beyond Aiur seem to have learned these languages (perhaps through Speak Language).  Again, if used in a D&D-type setting, may want to define how they can utilize scrolls, spells, or anything else with an incantation, if applicable.*** Immune to Sleep : Protoss do not sleep. Instead they must spend at least 8 hours Communing with other protoss via the link, or meditating if the character is a Dark Templar; either way this time also counts as time spent psionically focused for purposes of the No Mouth ability. Communion : When a non-Dark Templar protoss rests, it is actually communicating with all the other communing protoss. This allows them to exchange information no matter how distant.  To contact a specific individual, you must know that individual's name and they must be communing at the same time. You can communicate with multiple individuals at once. Aside from the skill bonuses/penalties incurred by using this method of communication, it is the same as talking to a person, and the protoss may attempt to tell as much or as little as they desire; how much another understands is up to them as normal. While comunicating this way, protoss have a +2 circumstance bonus on Diplomacy checks and -2 circumstance penalty on Bluff checks. This ability stretches across the planes but not across cosmologies (in case that's an issue in your campaign).***I'd suggest that communication in this manner is slower than normal, taking perhaps 4 times as long to get a message across or to receive a reply, as the protoss has stretched their mind far across the cosmos to touch upon the minds of their fellows, and their mental impulses must still travel a large distance.  Also, the mental contact of communion should be abstract and vague for the most part, requiring the protoss to be familiar with an individual if they're going to attempt actual communication with them, and protoss are likely to be rather indifferent or unfriendly to the questions or requests of protoss from other castes or tribes, requiring some serious skill checks to get any useful information or favors through the link.*** Inborn powers : All protoss have some natural psionic abilities. At 1st-level a protoss has 3 natural power points, they gain 3 more at 5th level, an additional 5 at level 10, and 7 more at 15th.  These power points are added to their total if they have any more from psionic manifesting classes.  Each tribe learns a different list of powers at these levels, in addition to any they may learn through psionic manifesting classes.  The DCs are Charisma-based and the manifester level is their character level.***I slightly altered the text above, to make it more clear and fair.*** Tribal Traits : These are in addition to the traits above, a choice of tribes is made at charachter creation and cannot be changed afterward.  All protoss must choose a tribe to originate from upon character creation. Furinax tribe (Khalai caste) (technologists, weaponsmiths) +2 Int, -2 ChaCunning craftsmen the Khalai are used to dealing with machines, and tend to come off cold to others as a result. +2 on any one Craft skill chosen at 1st-level (no changing). Imprint Stone as bonus feat at 1st-level. Inborn powers : lvl 1 : Minor Creation, Psioniclvl 5 : Identify, Psioniclvl 10 : Telekinetic Forcelvl 15 : Fabricate, Psionic F.C - Shaper (or just Psion if you don't like to F.C. with subclasses). ***I noted the Furinax tribe as comprising the Khalai caste, as the Starcraft materials I have don't mention any other Khalai-caste tribes.  I do not have the XPH yet for D&D, so I don't know what Telekinetic Force does, but it should probably be swapped out with some other psionic power related to item creation, identification, or enhancement.  Perhaps some metaphysical weapon sort of power, or something like the major creation power.*** Sargas tribe (Templar caste) (enforcers, assassins) -2 Int, +2 WisIron-willed soldiers, the Templar tend to leave most of the cerebral matters to the Khalai and Judicators. +2 to Intimidate skill checks. Speed Of Thought as a bonus feat at 1st-level. Inborn powers : lvl 1 : Force Screenlvl 5 : Lion's Charge, Psioniclvl 10 : Vampiric Bladelvl 15 : Weapon of energy F.C. - SoulKnife ***I noted the Sargas tribe as one of the tribes of the Templar caste, and I will note some suggestions for other Templar-caste tribes below.  I recommend that Templars of the Sargas tribe get Iron Will as a bonus feat instead of Speed Of Thought, because they stubbornly cling to their individuality and tribal identity, hardly cooperating with the Judicators and only partially adhering to the Khala.  Change their inborn powers to something like mind thrust, false sensory input, mind blast, and ultrablast (to use the 3E terms).  If there's an XPH power that better replicates the High Templar's Hallucination ability than the meager False Sensory Input power, use the better ability by all means.*** ***Auriga tribe (Templar caste) (protectors of the great fleet) +2 Int, -2 Wis +1 racial bonus on Will saves, further +2 against fear effects Skill Focus (either *Pilot*, or *Craft - Starship Building*, or *Knowledge - Space Navigation*, or *Profession - Starfarer*) as a bonus feat at 1st-level. Inborn powers : lvl 1 : Mind Thrustlvl 5 : False Sensory Inputlvl 10 : Mind Blastlvl 15 : Ultrablast F.C. - Psychic Warrior*** ***Auriga tribe (Templar caste) (high templar command) +2 Int, -2 Wis +1 on Diplomacy, Intimidate, and Sense Motive skill checks Inertial Armor as a bonus feat at 1st-level. Inborn powers : lvl 1 : Mind Thrustlvl 5 : False Sensory Inputlvl 10 : Mind Blastlvl 15 : Ultrablast F.C. - Telepath Psion*** Ara tribe (Judicator caste) (conclave praetor guard) +2 int, -2 wisHighly cerebral and well studied, the Judicators have acute but fragile minds. +2 on Knowledge (Psionics) checks. Psionic Body as a bonus feat at 1st-level. Inborn powers : lvl 1 : Mind Linklvl 5 : Read Thoughtslvl 10 : Empathic Transfer, Hostilelvl 15 : Dominate, Psionic F.C. - Erudite (or Psion if you don't use Erudite) ***Noted Ara tribe as the primary Judicator caste members.  I'd suggest changing the tribal ability mods for Ara protoss to +2 Wis, -2 Cha, based on their background.  Also, maybe consider their tribal bonus feat to be Leadership, despite the normal prerequisites for that feat, because the Judicators undeniably rule over the other protoss and guide them.  Listed below are stats for the other Judicator-caste tribe mentioned in the Starcraft materials I have.*** ***Shelak tribe (Judicator caste) (librarians, guardians of the crystals) +2 Int, -2 Wis +1 on Knowledge (History), and Knowledge (Psionics), and Psicraft skill checks. Craft Crystal Capacitor as a bonus feat at 1st-level, regardless of prerequisites. Inborn powers : lvl 1 : Mind Thrustlvl 5 : False Sensory Inputlvl 10 : Mind Blastlvl 15 : Ultrablast F.C. - Erudite, or Psion if not using the Erudite from Dragon Magazine.*** Shakuras exiles' tribe (Templar caste) (dark templar) +2 WisDark Templar are cut off from the Link and have been forced to develop strong minds merely to survive. +2 on Move Silently skill checks. Psionic Weapon as a bonus feat at 1st-level. No Communion ability, Dark Templar instead meditate to rest. Inborn powers : lvl 1 : Conceal Thoughtslvl 5 : Prowesslvl 10 : Escape Detectionlvl 15 : Truevenom Weapon F.C. - SoulKnife. ***I'd impose a -2 Charisma penalty to go with the +2 Wisdom bonus.  Then increase the Move Silently bonus to a +5 instead of +2.  Also, allow Dark Templar to always take 10 on Move Silently and Hide checks regardless of conditions.  Replace the Prowess inborn power with Amplified Invisibility or something (the invis that allows you to attack and stay unseen).  Replace Truevenom Weapon likewise with perhaps Sending, or Control Sound, or something else appropriately sneaky or the like from the XPH.*** What do you think? This is a rough draft so pick it to pieces. The ECL is a big stumper? How much is that communion ability worth? ***I think the Protoss traits you grant would be equivalent to a +3 ECL, maybe +4 ECL instead.  With my alterations, definitely a +3 ECL or perhaps a +2 ECL, but probably +3.***</blockquote>

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