Just got Races of Stone

[the Jester]

Wow, this book sounds worth grabbing after all- I hadn't anticipated buying it, fearing another gnome-hatin' sourcebook that would suck. But it sounds cool.

And here's another big yippee to the inclusion of psionics in the supplement!

 

[TheBadElf]

I fear to ask, but it's going to be another week before I can pick my copy up...what is an "Extreme" shield??

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I fear to ask, but it's going to be another week before I can pick my copy up...what is an "Extreme" shield??

A shield for an Extreme Explorer?

 

[Dark Jezter]

I fear to ask, but it's going to be another week before I can pick my copy up...what is an "Extreme" shield??

The official shield of the X-Games, dude!

 

[JDragon]

Are the new deities in the book deities of the new Dwarf and Gnome subraces?

Nope, just the ones lister earlier in the thread.

 

[Derren]

Oh great. Dwarves now have two greater gods and dragons are stuck with an intermediate one as leader...

The book sounds really good and so untypical for WotC to make so much fluff.
How are the racial informations in the book? Interesting and beliveable writeups or are the dwarves just described as gruff, beer drinking superminer/blacksmith and gnomes as illusion comedians? (The typical flat steriotypes)

 

[JDragon]

Could you give some spoilers on the Deepwarden? Anything new or just a random Underdark recap?

Thanks

I don't have the Underdark book, but I'll give you a basic outline and you can tell us.

Deepwarden
Pre Reqs:
Dwarf
BaB +5
Skills climb 5, Heal 5, Jump 5, Dungeoneering 5, survival 5
Endurance

HD d12

Lots of class skills, 6 + INT Skill points./level

Fighters BAB
Good Fort & Will Saves
1st track, trap sense +1
2nd stone warden - add con the AC instead of Dex
3rd animal messenger
4th trap sense +2, uncanny dodge
5th stubborn mind
6th sending
7th swift tracker, trap sense +3
8th improved uncanny dodge
9th greater animal messenger
10th trap sense +4

 

[JDragon]

I fear to ask, but it's going to be another week before I can pick my copy up...what is an "Extreme" shield??

Its a really big shield, so big that you can't do any thing with it except block attacks. You can't even use it to shield bash, but it offers molre protection than a "normal" shield.

 

[Michael Tree]

Dwarves get racial substitution levels for: Cleric, Fighter and Sorcerer. For starters, the dwarf cleric uses d10s, the fighter d12s and the sorcerer d6s on the levels he is allowed to substitute.

Gnomes get racial substitution levels for: Bard, Illusionist and Ranger.

Goliaths get substitution levels for: Barbarian, druid and rogue.

This sounds particularly intriguing. Can you give us some details?

 

[Tzarevitch]

This sounds particularly intriguing. Can you give us some details?

I will do the best I can without the book in front of me. I basically it uses the same concept as the Planar Substitution levels from the Planar Handbook. At certain levels, if there is a substitution level available for that race and class you can choose to give up the listed class ability from the PHB for an alternate ability. The substitution option is designed to allow you to tailor some of the core classes to a variant that is more appropriate for the race and make you slightly more powerful in a specific area that the race is supposed to be good at.

For example, If I remember correctly, the dwarf cleric swaps out the ability to turn undead and d8 HD for d10 HD and the ability to Smite Giants. The implication is that dwarven clerics tend to battle giants more than they battle undead so the option allows you to tailor your cleric to be more of a prototypical dwarven cleric.

The fighter swaps out bonus feats at the listed levels for bigger HD at those levels (d12) and abilities to get more effectiveness out of heavy armor (reduce armor check penalties and increase overall AC while in heavy armor if I remember correctly). At first level he swaps out his bonus feat and gains Axe Focus or something like that which counts as the Weapon Focus feat for all of the listed axe types (so it gives you the benefit of multiple Weapon Focus feats all wrapped up in one).

The dwarf sorcerer swaps out d4 HD and the "spell known" he would gain at the specified levels for a higher HD (d6), the ability to functionally draw power from the earth to metamagic spells (empower is the one I specifically remember), give himself a little DR and some other abilities that I can't remember right now.

I didn't look closely at the gnome substitution stuff (for the Bard and the Illusionist) but they tended to be geared to making illusions better. I don't really remember the goliath stuff at all. I will however check my books and reply in more detail when I get back home this afternoon.

Tzarevitch