Racial Classes -- #1: The Gnome

[Gez]

Gnome Racial Class
HD: d6

								Spell slots per Day  Caster
Level	BAB	Fort	Ref	Will	Special			0  1  2  3  4  5  6  Level
--0--					Gnome traits		3  -  -  -  -  -  -     1
  1	 +0	 +0	 +0	 +2	Gnosis, spells		5  -  -  -  -  -  -     1
  2	 +1	 +0	 +0	 +3	Familiar		6  0  -  -  -  -  -     1
  3	 +1	 +1	 +1	 +3	Brew Potion		6  1  -  -  -  -  -     2
  4	 +2	 +1	 +1	 +4	Extra trait		6  2  0  -  -  -  -     3
  5	 +2	 +1	 +1	 +4	Wis boost		6  3  1  -  -  -  -     3
  6	 +3	 +2	 +2	 +5	Trackless steps		6  3  2  -  -  -  -     4
  7	 +3	 +2	 +2	 +5	Animal companion	6  3  2  0  -  -  -     5
  8	 +4	 +2	 +2	 +6	Extra trait		6  3  3  1  -  -  -     6
  9	 +4	 +3	 +3	 +6				6  3  3  2  -  -  -     6
 10	 +5	 +3	 +3	 +7	Int boost		6  3  3  2  0  -  -     7
 11	 +5	 +3	 +3	 +7	Enhanced potions	6  3  3  3  1  -  -     8
 12	 +6	 +4	 +4	 +8	Extra trait		6  3  3  3  2  -  -     9
 13	 +6	 +4	 +4	 +8	Knowledge boost		6  3  3  3  2  0  -     9
 14	 +7	 +4	 +4	 +9				7  3  3  3  3  1  -    10
 15	 +7	 +5	 +5	 +9	Cha boost		7  4  3  3  3  2  -    11
 16	 +8	 +5	 +5	+10	Extra trait		7  4  4  3  3  2  0    12
 17	 +8	 +5	 +5	+10				7  4  4  4  3  3  1    12
 18	 +9	 +6	 +6	+11	Philosopher stone	7  4  4  4  4  3  2    13
 19	 +9	 +6	 +6	+11	Enhanced potions	7  4  4  4  4  4  3    14
 20	+10	 +6	 +6	+12	Extra trait		7  4  4  4  4  4  4    15

Base Skill Points: 4. Racial Skill List: Bluff, Climb, Craft, Diplomacy, Handle Animal, Heal, Knowledge (all skills, taken individually), Listen, Ride, Search, Sense Motive, Spot, Survival, Swim.

Gnome traits: As your PHB gnome traits.

Gnosis: as bardic knowledge
Spells: Gnomes can cast arcane spells from the wizard spell list (schools of abjuration, conjuration, divination, illusion, transmutation, and universal only) and divine spells from the druid spell list. To cast an arcane spell, a gnome needs an Int score of 10+spell level, and to cast a divine spell, he needs a Wis score of 10+spell level. The gnome uses the same spell slots to prepare all his spells, he assigns them as he sees fit. Bonus spell slots are based on Charisma. All gnomes start with knowledge of ghost sound, light and prestidigitation as arcane spells, but a gnome needs a spellbook to learn other arcane spells.
A gnome's caster level is equal to 3/4 his class level, rounded down, minimum 1.
Familiar: At second level, a gnome can aquire a familiar like a sorcerer or a wizard can. He uses his caster level for purpose of determing the familiar's abilities.
Brew Potion: A third-level gnome gains this feat automatically.
Extra Trait: Every four levels, a gnome can choose an extra racial trait, among those ones:

• Darkvision 60 ft. A gnome can take this trait one more time to increase his darkvision range to 120 ft.
• Racial Enemies: The gnome's +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against kobolds and goblinoids is extended to orcs, all reptilian humanoids, and giants. The gnome also gains a +2 racial bonus to spell damage rolls against his racial enemies.
• Stealthy: A gnome with this trait gains a +4 racial bonus on Hide and Move Silently checks. This bonus increases to +8 in one chosen environment (such as forest or underground). A gnome with this trait adds Rogue as an extra favored class.
• Keen Senses: A gnome with this trait gains a +2 racial bonus on Spot checks, and the Scent ability. A gnome with this trait adds Ranger as an extra favored class.
• Speech & Silence: A gnome with this trait can speak with animals at will as a supernatural ability, and can cast silence once per day as a spell-like ability, centered on his body. He also gains two bonus 0-level spell slots, and no longer needs a spellbook to prepare mage hand and message.
• Stonecunning: A gnome with this trait gains a +2 racial bonus on Search checks to notice unusual stonework. A gnome with this trait who merely comes within 10 feet of unusual stonework can make a Search check as though actively searching, and can use the Search skill to find stonework traps as a rogue can. He can also intuit depth, sensing the approximate distance underground as naturally as a human can sense which way is up.
• Dodge Training: A gnome with this trait extends his dodge bonus to AC against giants to a dodge bonus to AC against all enemies. A gnome with this trait adds Monk as an extra favored class.
• Chaos Mastery: A gnome with this trait gains Spell Power +1 when casting spells with the Chaos descriptor. In addition, he gains immunity to confusion effects. Once per day, he can reroll one roll he has just made, before the Dungeon Master declares whether it resulted in success or failure. The character must take the result of the reroll, even if it is worse than the original roll.
• Sorcerous Blood: A gnome with this trait can cast entropic shield once per day as a spell-like ability. In addition, he gains two bonus 0-level spell slots, and no longer needs a spellbook to prepare daze and flare. He adds sorcerer as an extra favored class.
• Fast Movement: A gnome with this trait has a base speed of 30 ft., despite being Small. He also gains a +1 racial bonus on Initiative checks.
• River Gnome: A gnome with this trait has a Swim speed of 20 ft., and gains a +8 racial bonus on Swim checks, etc. He can holds his breath for 4 times his Constitution score.
• Arcane Gnome: A gnome with this trait is no longer limited in the schools of magic he can access to as a gnome. He can prepare arcane spells from the wizard spell lists, including the schools of enchantment, evocation, and necromancy. He adds Use Magic Device to his list of class skills. He adds Wizard as an extra favored class.
• Fire Gnome: A gnome with this trait gains spell power +1 when casting spells with the Fire descriptor. In addition, he can cast once per day each heat metal and produce flame as spell-like abilities. This trait can be taken a second time to gain fire resistance 5 and spell power +2 (instead of +1), and a third time to gain the fire subtype.
• Undetectable: A gnome with this trait gains a continuous nondetection ability. In addition, he can cast blur and disguise self each once per day as spell-like abilities.

Wisdom Boost: A 5th-level gnome's Wisdom score is increased by 2.
Trackless Steps: A 6th-level gnome no longer leaves tracks behind him in natural environments.
Animal Companion: A 7th-level gnome gains an animal companion, as a druid 6 levels lower. Acceptable animal companions include dire badger, dire fox, and wolverine.
Intelligence Boost: A 10th-level gnome's Intelligence score is increased by 2.
Enhanced Potions: At 11th level, a gnome can brew potions holding 4th-level spells. At 19th level, a gnome can brew potions holding 5th- or 6th-level spells.
Knowledge Boost: At 13th level, a gnome gains 12 extra skill points to spend in Knowledge skills.
Charisma Boost: A 15th-level gnome's Charisma score is increased by 2.
Philosopher Stone: At 18th level, a gnome learns how to create a philosopher stone. A philosopher stone is a wondrous item that can transmute a small amount of a given material (usually metals, but other stones can be designed) into raw gold. A philosopher stone also stops the aging process of its owner. (Price and other technical aspects to be determined later.)

 

[Angel Tarragon]

Why is it that at levels 11 - 14 they can only cast one first level spell per day?

 

[HellHound]

Assuming that's a typo in the spells per day list.

Awesome - I love the idea of racial classes going back to the days of Classic D&D.

 

[Gez]

Yes it is a typo. Copy/pasting error, more precisely. I've edited that.

 

[HellHound]

Like I said, I love it.

I'm inclined to try my hand at a goblin class in a similar vein, but I don't expect I'll find the time to actually do so anytime soon.

 

[Angel Tarragon]

Really like the concept of this. Are you planning on typing out the elf like this?

 

[Gez]

Yes. The elf will be along the line of a fighter/wu jen build, with weapon finesse and skirmish. BAB 3/4, caster level 3/4, good Ref. As for gnomes, extra traits every four levels, which will be designed to allow to emulate most of the innumerable elven subraces -- so you'll have a Darkvision trait and a SR trait to make a drow, a water breathing and a swim speed trait to make an aquatic elf, and so on.

I'm also working on the concept for the dwarf. The concept for now is fighter with a small side of cleric (like a paladin), with a few runic things thrown in. Then I'll work on the halfling, and maybe some other races (kobold, raptorans, etc.).

 

[Cheiromancer]

An aquatic elf would need to be able to swim and breathe water from level 1, I think. Maybe you should split the PHB traits into two groups, and say that a character takes any two traits at first level? Then an aquatic elf could pick up the basic elf traits at a later level.