Gez
First Post
I'm not talking about the monstrous compendium, but of the campaign setting.
Character Races
First, some definitions are in order. The traditional definition of humanoid includes only goblins and their relatives — kobolds, orcs, hobgoblins, gnolls, and ogres. The preferred definition, however, describes a humanoid as any intelligent being with one head, two arms, and at least two legs.
Alternately in the SAVAGE COAST setting, kobolds, goblins, orcs, hobgoblins, gnolls, ogres, and their close relatives are referred to as "goblinoids." Elves, half-elves, halflings, dwarves, and gnomes are referred to collectively as "demihumans." Other player character races — lupins, rakastas, tortles, and lizard kin (shazaks, caymas, and gurrash) — are known as "near-humans." Araneas are called "unhumans." All of these categories — goblinoids, demihumans, near-humans, and unhumans — fall under the general heading "humanoids."
The Savage Coast is a racially mixed area; members of most races are fairly common, or at least known, and have their own civilizations and settlements. As a consequence, most people do not find it especially notable to see a lupin walk down the street, though a cayma or gurrash might raise a few eyebrows. Members of most other races are considered normal people, and thus do not usually draw any special attention, positive or negative.
This is not to say that the Savage Coast is entirely free from prejudice. Indeed, many of the area's wars are related to racial prejudice and conflict: Lupins and rakastas have border conflicts, rakastas generally dislike shazaks, and gurrash hate them. However, a lupin would not find it unusual to meet a rakasta on the road, and the two might even cooperate if necessary. How a particular member of a race is treated depends largely on the individual and the circumstances.
Following are brief descriptions of the character races available in a SAVAGE COAST campaign. Classes available to each race are covered under "Choosing a Character Class" subsection later in this chapter. Kits are covered in detail in the "Character Kits" chapter.
Standard Character Races
Most of the standard character races are available on the Savage Coast, with the exception of gnomes. Dwarves and elves also have an expanded choice of character classes in this setting. The most important alteration is that demihuman races do not have their own cultures on the Savage Coast.For instance, while elves do live along the coast, they have no distinctly "elven" culture. The demihumans who live in the area are integrated into other cultures. In areas where human culture is dominant, it often has elements of demihuman culture. One consequence of this absorption of the demihuman races is that their languages are extremely rare; demihuman characters may not know their traditional tongue.
Note that because of the Red Curse, most humans and demihumans native to the Savage Coast have a reddish cast to their skin. This varies by region, so red skin is common and somewhat dark in the Savage Baronies, while it is progressively less common and lighter in hue in countries farther west.
The various cultures and the appearance of their people are described in the cultural sections earlier in this book.
Humans
There are no special adjustments for human characters in this campaign setting. Most humans of the Savage Coast live in the Savage Baronies, Robrenn, and Eusdria. Some live in Herath as well. It is also possible to play a human from Hule, the City-States, or other areas outside the Savage Coast, but characters from those places are described only briefly in this handbook.
Dwarves
Dwarves are fairly common in Eusdria and Cimarron, but they also live in Robrenn, Renardy, Bellayne, and Herath. The dwarves conform to the cultural norms of the areas they dwell in. Physically, Eusdrian dwarves are similar to mountain dwarves; all others resemble hill dwarves.
Eusdrian dwarves can be bards if they take the Skald kit, but they are limited to 12th-level advancement. Dwarf Skalds are also limited by the demi-bard restrictions as detailed in the Complete Bard's Handbook. Most importantly, they cannot cast spells, but they can learn to resist spells. If a dwarf Skald finds a spell and succeeds on a "chance to learn spells" roll, the character can later resist the effects of that spell by successfully passing another "chance to learn spells" roll when it is cast. The number of spells the character can resist is limited both by Intelligence (per the "Maximum Number of Spells per Level" rule) and the bard's spell progression. Thus, a 2nd-level dwarf Skald can attempt to resist one 1st-level spell per day, provided the character has "learned" the spell previously.
Elves
Like dwarves, elves have no culture of their own on the Savage Coast. They are common in Robrenn, Eusdria, Bellayne, Renardy, and Herath, and they make up the majority of the population of Torre—n.
Elves conform to the cultural norms of the states in which they live, even in regard to allowed character classes. An elf born and raised in Robrenn can be a druid but can advance only to 13th level. Even if the DM allows characters with high scores in their prime requisite abilities to exceed normal level limits, an elf can never be a 14th- or 15th-level druid in the druid hierarchy. Instead, the elf retains the abilities of a 13th-level druid until earning enough experience to reach 16th level, at which point the character becomes a hierophant druid.
Elves can be bards on the Savage Coast if they take an appropriate kit, but they are restricted in level as described in that kit. An elf from Robrenn can be a Peasant or Noble bard (level limit 13), while one from Bellayne can be a Herald (level limit 6).
Physically, most elves of the Savage Coast look like high elves, but those in Eusdria are similar to gray elves.
Half-Elves
Half-elves are common in Eusdria and Torre—n, and some are also found in Robrenn and Herath. Their racial adjustments and restrictions are those detailed in the basic game rules. In this campaign, half-elves use kits appropriate to the lands in which they live.
Along the Savage Coast, half-elves breed true. That is, the offspring of two half-elves is always a half-elf, as is the offspring of a half-elf and a human or a half-elf and an elf. Some people on the Savage Coast use the term "demi-elf" to refer to those who have at least one half-elven parent. A person who has one elven parent and one human parent is still correctly known as a half-elf.
Halflings
Like other demihumans on the Savage Coast, halflings conform to the cultures in which they live, having no unique culture of their own. Though most common in Cimarron, halflings are also found in Robrenn and Eusdria, but rarely in Renardy, Bellayne, and Herath. Hairfeets are the most common halflings, though stouts are found in Cimarron and Eusdria, and tallfellows in Robrenn, Eusdria, and Bellayne. Like half-elves, halfling characters use those kits available in their homeland. They have no special adjustments in this campaign setting, except for the fact that halflings from the Savage Coast cannot become Heralds.
Gnomes
There are no gnomes native to the Savage Coast. Player character gnomes must be imported from other regions and should adhere to the rules governing those places.
New Character Races
There are seven new player character races in this campaign setting: lupins, rakastas, tortles, araneas, and three varieties of lizard kin (gurrash, caymas, and shazaks). If the DM approves, it may also be possible to play some sort of goblinoid.
Like the races presented in the PHB, the new player character races presented in this source have special abilities. Each race is listed individually.
Lupins
Lupins are furred humanoids with doglike heads. Descended from a nomadic culture, they now make up the vast majority of the population of Renardy. Some lupins even live in Herath and the Savage Baronies, but elsewhere they are rare.
Lupins culture mimics that of the Savage Baronies, so there are a wide range of character classes and kits available to them.
Lupins have infravision with a range of 60 feet. They also have excellent senses of smell and hearing, as well as special instincts, which give them six special abilities: detecting lycanthropes, detecting invisible or ethereal beings, blind-fighting, tracking, recognizing odors, and detecting noises.
A lupin has a 99% chance to recognize a werewolf in any of its forms and a 15% chance to recognize other lupins in unusual forms.
When confronted with invisible creatures, a lupin receives a +4 bonus to any saving throws made for detection (as explained under "Invisibility" in Chapter 13 of the DMG). A lupin automatically gets a saving throw (with the bonus) when an invisible creature approaches within 10 feet and for every round the invisible being remains that near. The lupin does not automatically know where the invisible creature is, just that it is nearby; locating it requires other clues. A lupin can also use this ability to detect the presence of ethereal creatures, such as ghosts, phase spiders, or someone wearing plate mail of etherealness. The lupin recognizes the difference between ethereal things and simply invisible ones but gains no special attack or defense capabilities against ethereal beings.
Lupin characters automatically gain the blind-fighting proficiency without spending nonweapon proficiency slots. They also have the tracking ability with a score equal to half their Wisdom (rounded up). A lupin character who spends slots to take the tracking proficiency gains the ability at full Wisdom rating like rangers of other races, and Lupin rangers have the ability at a rating equal to their Wisdom score +6.
Lupins can recognize the smell of a person or creature they have encountered before. Recognition of a particular race is automatic, but the lupin must make an Intelligence check to recognize a particular individual by smell. Perfumes or strong odors in the area can give the lupin a Ð1 to Ð4 penalty to this ability, depending on the strength of the odors.
A normal lupin has a 35% chance to detect noise as thieves do (see Table 11.2). This chance increases by 2% per level after the first. Lupin thieves begin at 35% as well (which is the normal 15% of thieves, plus an initial 20% racial bonus), also gaining the bonus of 2% per level. They can then improve upon this ability by adding percentage points from the 30 points per level that thieves receive.
Because of their acute senses, lupins receive a Ð2 penalty on their saving throws against attacks based on odor (such as those made by ghasts or stinking cloud spells) or sound (such as a banshee's wail or a harpy's song).
Wolfsbane repels lupins. The substance is even more poisonous to them than it is to humans. Wolfsbane ingested by a lupin acts as Type J poison (a failed saving throw indicates death, while success indicates a loss of 20 hit points). Fortunately, the keen senses of a lupin nearly always alert it in time to avoid ingesting the substance. If wolfsbane is somehow injected into a lupin's bloodstream, it acts as Type P poison (a failed saving throw causes a 50% drop in all ability scores for 1d3 days).
Rakastas
Rakastas are feline humanoids. Bellayne is populated mostly by rakastas, split between the settled town dwellers and the nomads who carry on rakastan ancient traditions. Rakastan culture is unique, somewhat mystical, and concerned primarily with battle and honor. Some members of this race dwell in Herath, but they are rare in other states.
Rakastas have excellent balance and reflexes, taking only half damage from any fall. They have infravision with a range of 60 feet. Also, they have excellent hearing and some special instincts. Together, these give rakastas three special abilities: detecting invisible or ethereal beings, blind-fighting, and detecting noise.
When confronted with invisible creatures, a rakasta receives a +4 bonus to any saving throws made for detection (as explained under "Invisibility" in Chapter 13 of the DMG). A rakasta automatically gets a saving throw (with the bonus) when an invisible creature approaches within 10 feet and during every round the invisible being remains that close. The rakasta does not automatically know where the invisible creature is, just that it is close by; locating it still requires other clues. Rakastas can also use this ability to detect the presence of ethereal creatures, such as ghosts, phase spiders, or someone wearing plate mail of etherealness. They recognize the difference between things ethereal and those simply invisible but gain no special attack or defense capabilities against ethereal beings.
Rakasta characters automatically gain the blind-fighting proficiency without spending nonweapon proficiency slots. A normal rakasta also has a 20% chance to hear noise like a thief. Rakasta thieves can further improve upon this ability, just as thieves of other races can improve on their base scores (for thieving skill adjustments, see Table 11.2). Note that the rakastan racial bonus is already added into this base; rakasta thieves do not receive an additional 5% bonus. See "Listening" in Chapter 15 of the DMG for more information.
Because of their keen senses, rakastas receive a Ð1 penalty on their saving throws against attacks based on sound (such as a banshee's wail or a harpy's song).
Tortles
Tortles are bipedal turtles, standing about the same height as humans. They have inhabited the lands of the Savage Coast for thousands of years. Tortles have no real government; they live in small family dwellings, often within the borders of some other race's state. The creatures are generally peaceful, scholarly farmers, but they will defend their homes.
Tortles have infravision with a range of 60 feet and can see underwater within this range as well. The creatures automatically gain the swimming nonweapon proficiency, but they are clumsy swimmers. Their natural buoyancy keeps them afloat while they paddle along (even across bogs, quicksand, and mud). Tortles can hold their breath underwater for 10 turns.
Tortles do not wear armor but can retreat into their shells for protection. With some effort, they can bend and twist to pull their limbs and head into the shell, but they can take no other actions in the same round. When fully withdrawn, a tortle cannot move or attack but becomes AC 1 and gains a +4 bonus to all saving throws, even against mental attacks (because the tortle gains the benefit of its shell and marshals all its inner strength for defense). A withdrawn tortle can hear and smell but cannot see outside of its shell, making it immune to gaze attacks and other attacks that require a victim to see.
Lizard Kin
There are three kinds of lizard kin on the Savage Coast: the shazaks, who are much like the lizard men described in the MONSTROUS MANUAL tome; the frenetic caymas, who stand only a foot tall; and the barbaric gurrash, who stand about eight feet tall. (For more information on the lizard kin, see the "Shazak, Ator, and Cay" chapter earlier in this book.)
Each race has its own nation, located in or near the Bayou. The shazaks are peaceful primitives who build communal dwellings in the forests north of Herath. The caymas are curious and energetic; they are inventive but impractical architects who build mazelike towns north of the Bayou. The gurrash are a powerful and dangerous folk, also known as gator men, who live in the Bayou itself.
All lizard kin have a few abilities in common. Each has a 20% chance to remain undetected in a swamp environment (or an additional +20% bonus to the hiding in shadows score if the character is a thief as described in Table 11.2). All have infravision: shazaks to 60', caymas to 90', and gurrash to 120'.
Shazaks, gurrash, and caymas all gain the swimming proficiency automatically. A shazak or cayma can hold his or her breath for twice the normal length of time (a number of rounds equal to 2/3 the character's Constitution score). A gurrash can hold his or her breath for three times the normal length of time (a number of rounds equal to his or her Constitution score).
Araneas
Araneas are arachnid mages thought by most to be extinct. Those who still exist are usually found in Herath, as explained in the "Herath" chapter of this book.
In spider form, araneas have AC 7 and never wear armor. In humanoid or demispider form, they have the base AC of the emulated race. Araneas have infravision with a range of 60 feet. They can take a proficiency in animal handling and animal training for spiders, the ability being applied to spiders with an Intelligence of 1 or more. Because of their other abilities and their involvement with the creation of the Red Curse, araneas do not receive an initial Legacy. However, when they reach maturity, they must wear cinnabryl or suffer the detrimental effects of a randomly chosen power. An aranea can gain Legacies by becoming an Inheritor.
Araneas change shapes with ease. The ability is automatic, learned within a few weeks after birth, and is not limited in duration or number of uses per day. However, in trying to maintain secrecy, an aranea will never assume spider or demispider form among nonaraneas. It takes one round to change from humanoid to demispider, demispider to spider, or vice versa. Thus, changing from spider to humanoid or the reverse takes a minimum of two rounds.
The demispider form is merely a transitional phase for araneas and cannot be held for more than two rounds per level. This form has no special abilities or bonuses. The physical appearance of an aranea in demispider form is vaguely humanoid — with an extra pair of eyes set in the temples, one extra joint on each finger, spinnerets in the palms of the hands, and small fangs. This manifestation is similar to the Affliction caused by a Webcasting Legacy. Still, they never risk taking demispider form around nonaraneas. This combination of humanoid and arachnoid characteristics contains a link they would rather not reveal.
An aranea in humanoid form is effectively a member of the race emulated and has any special abilities of that race. For instance, an aranea in lupin form has excellent senses of smell and hearing. In all cases, though, the aranea follows the character class and level restrictions for araneas.
In essence, an aranea has two real identities. The creature's true race cannot be determined unless someone actually watches the change into spider form or has some way to read the character's mind (or possesses some other extraordinary means). Even a true seeing spell is generally useless because it allows the recipient "to see all things as they actually are," and araneas of the Savage Coast actually have dual "true" forms. If a true seeing spell is used on an aranea in demispider form, it reveals the last true form held. Note that the identify species spell described in the "Magic" chapter was invented by the araneas, so it is useless against them. Araneas use the spell to ferret out spies and insure the security of special meetings.
Though their shapechanging ability was originally gained through arcane means, neither true form is magical. Therefore, a dispel magic spell cast on an aranea in humanoid form does not cause it to revert to spider form. If cast on an aranea in demispider form, dispel magic can (if a successful roll is made, using the aranea's level or Hit Dice as the value for the opposing caster) cause the aranea to change into the last true form held.
The shapechanging ability gives araneas partial immunity to polymorph spells; as with lycanthropes and dopplegangers, they can resume their normal form after being affected by the spell for one round. Unfortunately for them, araneas are easier to hit and take extra damage from weapons enchanted with bonuses against shapechangers (such as a sword +1, +3 vs. lycanthropes and shapechangers). Shapechanging does not heal wounds an aranea has taken. When killed, an aranea stays in the form held just before death.
Goblinoids
There are no kobolds native to the Savage Coast; however, if the DM allows it — goblins, orcs, hobgoblins, gnolls, and ogres can be played as PCs, using the rules in the Complete Book of Humanoids. Members of those races should use the kits recommended for them in the "Character Kits" chapter and the cultures described in the "Other Places" chapter.
Table 11.1: RACIAL CLASS AND LEVEL LIMITS
Fighter Paladin Ranger Wizard1 Cleric Druid Thief Bard
Aranea 6 -- -- U 9 12 12 --
Cayma2 8 -- -- 12 8 -- 14 --
Gurrash2 15 -- -- 6 7 -- 9 --
Lupin 13 -- U 12 15 13 13 9
Rakasta 15 -- 11 15 12 13 15 U
Shazak2 12 -- -- 7 10 -- 11 8
Tortle 11 -- -- 9 15 -- 9 9
A number indicates the maximum level attainable by a given race in a given class; "U" indicates unlimited advancement; and "--" indicates that members of that race cannot advance in that class.
1. This entry covers all wizard classes; some races are restricted from certain wizard classes. For a list of wizard classes available to each race, see Table 11.5. Level limits are the same for all wizards of the same race, regardless of specific class.
2. These races are relatively primitive and have not developed extremely specialized professions. Therefore, they are more limited in classes.
Table 11.2: THIEVING SKILL RACIAL ADJUSTMENTS
Race PP OL F/RT MS HS DN CW RL
Aranea -- -- -- +10% +5% -- +5%1 +10%
Cayma -10% +10% +5% +10% +10%2 -- -- --
Gurrash -5% -10% -- +5% +5%2 +10% -- -10%
Lupin -- -- +5% -- -- +20%3 -5% --
Rakasta -- -- -- +5% +5% +5% +5% --
Shazak -5% -5% -- +5% +5%2 +5% -5% -5%
Tortle -- -- -- -5% -5% -- -20% --
1. An aranea in arachnid form has a 50% bonus.
2. This becomes a 20% bonus when in a swamp environment.
3. This is the lupin's bonus at 1st level; the bonus increases by 2% per level thereafter.
Table 11.3: RACIAL ABILITY REQUIREMENTS
Str Dex Con Int Wis Cha
Aranea 3/18 8/18 3/16 12/18 3/18 3/18
Cayma 3/13 8/18 3/18 3/16 3/16 3/18
Gurrash 10/18 3/18 8/18 3/12 3/18 3/16
Lupin 8/18 3/18 8/18 3/18 3/18 3/18
Rakasta 9/18 8/18 3/18 3/18 3/18 3/18
Shazak 8/18 3/18 6/18 3/17 3/18 3/16
Tortle 6/18 3/18 6/18 3/18 3/18 3/18
Table 11.4: RACIAL ABILITY ADJUSTMENTS
Aranea +2 Dex, +2 Int, -2 Str, -2 Con
Cayma +2 Dex, -1 Str, -1 Wis
Gurrash +2 Str, +2 Con, -2 Wis, -2 Cha
Lupin +1 Str, +1 Con, -1 Int, -1 Wis
Rakasta +2 Dex, -2 Wis
Shazak +1 Str, -1 Wis
Tortle +1 Wis, +1 Con, -2 Dex
hey, i sometimes do get things done in the time i said i would! 
