New Race: Birdmen

[Kichwas]

I'm adding Sky Cities like in the Meridian comic book to my setting.

Along with it I want to toss in a few PCs races that can fly on their own.

Flight is a very spiffy ability; so balancing it is an issue.


Here's some ideas:
Bird men are humans with wings.

They get flight at 40.
-2 Str.
All crushing weapons get +2 to threat range against them.

Is that balanced?

Should I add a -2 to Con as well?
A bonus to Dex? I want them essentially to be winged humans so I skipped that.

Should they lose the human skill point and feat bonus without getting it replaced by any special racial ability?


Anyone have any other flying PC races?

 

[Vhane]

That +2 threat from crushing weapons is a cool idea. I think this would be fine but you might want to up the flight speed to 50. I think thats more in line with the speeds of larger flyers.

 

[Crothian]

I'd add +2 to Dex. THat +2 to all threat ranges is a cool idea, but very powerful. Perhaps even a bonus to spot like +4.

You might also note that the can't do certain skills like swim or some other things.

Are the wings bird like or bat like?

I'd add in some flying abilities instead oif the bonus feat and skill point thing.

 

[bwgwl]

arcady said:

Bird men are humans with wings.

like the hawkmen from flash gordon! or whatsisname from barbarella.

i would only give them the skills/feat bonus of humans if you see them as essentially human beings who just happen to have wings.

if you see them as a race in their own right, like elves or dwarves, i'd give them something else. a Spot bonus in daylight (like most of the birds in the MM have) might be good, or maybe a free Flyby Attack feat?

i wouldn't give them too much else, because as you said, flight can be a very powerful ability.

another idea: don't the aarakroca (sp?) have some kind of racial claustrophobia? that might be an additional disadvantage you could add to these guys if you feel they need balancing.

 

[Tonguez]

IIRC According to Soldarins ECL calculator flight gives a +1ECL
IMHO +1 isn't a big issue and can genrally be ignored (anything greater than +1 is an issue but until +3 I don't think its major)

So I say just make them straight humans with the extra feat taken up with 'winged flight' (ie no bonus feat) and maybe start them with an NPC class (ie ECL -1) so it evens out to 0

Winged flight gives the Birdman wings and flight skill +1 (used for airborne manouveres). This skill is a 'class' skill and can be increased as such.

Remember no Heavy (possibly even medium) armour.

PS this is what I do in my game (except that the Kahuirere - humans with albatross wings- haven't been encountered nor played yet.)

However I do like thel crushing weapons +2 to threat range - even though it may be quite powerful in comparison

One other things I do is allow them to take the Run feat to up flight speed to 50 (instead of running speed as with non-flyers)

 

[Kichwas]

The goal is to make sure they are ECL 0.

So if flight is a big booster, they'd need a big detractor to balance it off.

The +2 threat range from crushing actually fits for a hollow bone structure.

As does the -2 Strength.

Are those two enough or too much to balance them?

Flight 50 sounds good.


Not sure what I'd give them in place of the bonus feat and skill point.

 

[Vhane]

The increased crit threat (x3 over norm) and a -2 to str should more than pay off the flight 50. Let em keep the human stuff, they were human once right?

 

[reapersaurus]

in an old gaming system, called Arcanum that a friend morphed with 2E D&D, I'm playing a Zephyr female.

As I remember, they got extreme bonuses to Spot (in that system, it was Perception: they could see fine details at a mile's distance) and a bonus to CHA (cause they were universally well-liked).
+1 to hit with missile weapons

Max STR was 14.
Claustrauphobic
Unable to wear armor of any sort (we play that Mak'era, my Battle-Mage, can wear light armor)
Can't fly if wounded for more than 2/3rd of h.p.s
Short-lived, and light race.
Low population.
Can carry only 1/2 their encumbrance when airborne.
Wingspan of 20 ft max- which can REALLY be used as a weakness (think of how easy it would be to hit those targets)
Wings take a full-round to fully spread the wings and become airborne.
The wings 'retract' and can be folded almost flat against a Zephyr's body if desired (95% undetectable if a large cloak is worn)

Zephyrs are typically high-strung and sensitive by nature. They have no outright prejudices, and are much admired for their beuty, grace, and singing voices.
All Zephyr have a peculiar loathing for reptiles and snakes, who along with the Naga are their greatest enemies.

I've been working on a Poser figure, but I'm not talented enough to pull it off.
arcady?

 

[Kichwas]

Here's what became my final writeup for the race:

Bird Men:
The Bird men resemble pointy eared humans with thin builds and long white feathered wings. They are a reclusive race found almost exclusively among the Sky Cities where they feel they can live in safety (though this is not always true). Most bird men shy away from contact with any non winged race; though a few venture forth and explore the world around them. Bird Men cultures almost universally disdain clothing as restrictive to flight. Despite this though they have a natural love for jewelry and shiny objects; which forms one of the few basis of trade with the outside world.

Bird Men have the following game stats:

• -2 Str
• Fly 50, Walk 30.
• +2 to Climb,Spot, and Intuit Direction checks, -2 to Swim checks.
• All Bird Men have Intuit Direction as a class skill.
• Far Vision: Bird Men can see twice as far as 'normal' in both day and night conditions. Note however that this is not enhanced low-light vision; The bird men lose detail and proper full color percetion in darkness just as a human does, they just see twice as far out, as if they had 20/10 vision.
• Poor sense of smell: Bird Men have a minus -4 on any check that depends on smell to determine success.
• All crushing weapons have a +2 threat range against them due to their hollow bones.
• Wingspan: Due to their Wingspan Birdmen find certain cramped areas difficult to manuever in.
• Prefered Class: Archer (See Sov Stone)

I've also got a pic of them up in my art gallery.

 

[Gez]

After the beautifully colored aaracokra and the ugly hairy "bat devils" (no more devils than tasmanian devils) from CC, after the avariels, kir-lanans and others, another flying race.

They seem OK balance-wise. The real nitpicker would say that you've forgotten the "+" in "All crushing weapons have a 2 threat range". And the penalty to swim seems better than restraining them from swimming. After all, penguins, auks, and several fisher birds prove that some birds can swim.