D&D 3E/3.5 Some 3.5->4e Races (Dromites, Necropolitans, Raptorans)

[Masquerade]

Dromite (Expanded Psionics Handbook)

Racial Traits
Average Height: 2'10"-3'2"
Average Weight: 25-35 lb.

Ability Scores: +2 Constitution, +2 Charisma
Size: Small
Speed: 5 squares
Vision: Normal

Languages: Common, Primordial
Skill Bonuses: +2 Insight
Antennae: You gain a +3 racial bonus on Perception checks opposed by Stealth checks.
Chitinous Skin: You have resist 5 + one-half your level to one of the following damage types: cold, fire, lightning, or thunder.
Hive's Will: You gain a +1 racial bonus to your Will defense.
Energy Ray: You can use Energy Ray as an encounter power.

Energy Ray Dromite Racial Power
Encounter * Cold, Fire, Lightning, or Thunder
Minor Action Ranged 10
Target: One creature
Attack: Charisma + 2 vs. Fortitude
Hit: 1d6 + Charisma modifier damage, and the target is slowed until the end of your next turn.
Special: The power's damage type is the same as the type chosen for Chitinous Skin.



Necropolitan (Libris Mortis)

Racial Traits
Average Height: 5'4"-6'0"
Average Weight: 93-154 lb.

Ability Scores: +2 Constitution, +2 Intelligence
Size: Medium
Speed: 6 squares
Vision: Low-light

Languages: Common, choice of one other
Skill Bonuses: +2 Arcana, +2 Diplomacy
Undead: You have the undead keyword, so effects that specifically target living creatures do not work against you. You don't need to breathe, but this doesn't render you immune to any combat effect.
Rather than sleep, necropolitans spend 4 hours refraining from any strenuous activity. You need to spend 4 hours in this state to gain the same benefits other races gain from taking a 6-hour extended rest. While resting in this low-exertion state, you are fully aware of your surroundings.
Increase the DC of Heal checks made to administer first aid to you by 5.
Necrotic Resistance: You have resist necrotic 5 + one-half your level.
Unnatural Resilience: You can use Unnatural Resilience as a daily power.

Unnatural Resilience Necropolitan Racial Power
Daily * Healing
Minor Action Personal
Effect: You gain regeneration equal to your Constitution modifier until the end of the encounter. If you take radiant damage, regeneration doesn't function on your next turn.



Raptoran (Races of the Wild)

Racial Traits
Average Height: 6'0"-6'4"
Average Weight: 140-180 lb.

Ability Scores: +2 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom
Size: Medium
Speed: 6 squares
Vision: Low-Light

Languages: Common, Elven
Skill Bonuses: +2 Athletics, +2 Perception
Unerring Direction: You have an instinctive sense of which direction is north, even when visual cues are unavailable.
Wing-Aided Movement: You can make all long jumps as if you had a running start.
Glide: You can use Raptoran Glide as an encounter power.

Raptoran Glide Raptoran Racial Power
Encounter
Move Action Personal
Effect: Fly 8 squares. If you don't end your move on solid ground, you float to the ground without taking falling damage.

 

[raptor112]

pretty cool, but why do dromites get Primordial?

 

[Masquerade]

pretty cool, but why do dromites get Primordial?

I wanted them to get a second language and, since there isn't currently any psionic material available, I thought I would play up the elemental connection.

 

[chronoplasm]

The Necropolitan is cool, but I don't see why it would have a +2 to diplomacy. I could see it with +2 to endurance or intimidate.

 

[raptor112]

Interesting, I didn't think of the elemental aspect...I hope when psionics gets updated, its one of the races that gets updeated with it (along with elan)

 

[Masquerade]

I hope when psionics gets updated, its one of the races that gets updeated with it (along with elan)

Totally. The XPH was one of my favorite 3.5 books, and it was the races that really set it apart from its 3e predecessor.

 

[Jawsh]

This thread came up via a Google search for "4e dromite" and I liked what was done here, but I felt like making a slight change to your version of a 4e dromite.

This is all good:

Average Height: 2'10"-3'2"
Average Weight: 25-35 lb.

Ability Scores: +2 Constitution; +2 Charisma
Size: Small
Speed: 5 squares
Vision: Normal

Languages: Common, Primordial
Skill Bonuses: +2 Insight
Antennae: You gain a +3 racial bonus on Perception checks opposed by Stealth checks.
Hive's Will: You gain a +1 racial bonus to your Will defense.

This is what I changed/added:

Chitinous Skin: You can use chitinous skin as an encounter power.
Energy Ray: You can use energy ray as an encounter power.

Chitinous Skin _____ Dromite Racial Power
With a psychic shudder, you rearrange your chitinous skin to absorb and adapt to incoming energy.
Encounter * Polymorph
Minor Action ______ Personal
Effect: You gain resist 5 + one-half your level to one of the following damage types: cold, fire, lightning, or thunder. You retain the effect until the next time you use the power.
At 11th level, choose two damage types. At 21st level, choose three damage types.

Energy Ray ________ Dromite Racial Power
You build up a store of energy across your body and release it in a sudden bolt that strikes a foe.
Encounter * Cold, Fire, Lightning, or Thunder
Minor Action _______ Ranged 10
Target: One creature
Attack: Charisma + 2 vs. Fortitude
Hit: 1d6 + Charisma modifier damage.
Special: The power's damage type is the same as the type chosen for chitinous skin.
At 11th level, you hit the target with two bolts, one each of the damage types chosen for chitinous skin (each dealing 1d6 + Charisma modifier damage). At 21st level, you hit the target with three bolts, one each of the damage types chosen for chitinous skin (each dealing 1d6 + Charisma modifier damage).

Clarification: You do not lose the effect of chitinous skin by discharging an energy ray.

Justification: For my campaign setting, I wanted dromites to be hardy and adaptable desert-dwellers. It made sense to me that dromites would learn how to adapt to any circumstances that the desert might throw at them, including both the scorching heat of the day and the freezing cold of night. Thunder and lightning are just thrown in as a bonus resistance, maybe simply a side-effect of being adaptable. For lightning, maybe there is some kind of static charge that builds up in their hives dug in sandy soil. Or maybe it's protection against lightning strikes for the rare occasions when it does rain, and storm, in the desert, and these are times when the dromites have to be active, collecting and diverting water in flash floods, as well as protecting and shoring up their outer defenses of their hives, which can be in danger of washing away.

Edit:

Further Justification: I just wanted to quickly add: the reason I think dromites should be able to change their energy resistance is because it can be a real pain to play a dromite that's immune to thunder and have to wait for the DM to give you thunder foes. Also, an energy damage attack is not as special in 4e as it was in 3e, since dragonborn also have an energy attack that you choose at 1st level.

More on Flavor: In case it wasn't sufficiently described, I'm picturing the dromite very subtly rearranging its chitinous skin at the cellular level in order to absorb and disperse heat, cold, electricity, or sonic shock impacts. I don't imagine the change to be entirely visible, except that the dromite's skin texture would appear to change, perhaps getting rougher, spikier, developing a hexagonal pattern, or perhaps filling tiny sacs with shock-absorbing fluid.