Notes towards my Spelljammer: Tale of the Comet game; hoping to get some feedback from someone smarter than I am (read as: ya'll) . . .
- send me mail at (my username above) at (gmail) dotcom.
The game's core will be Dungeons & Dragons ver. 3.5, including all applicable official d20 supplements & errata all non-WoC material will be subject to approval before incorporation into the mechanics.
- for the purposes of the game, Polyhedron #151 (SJ) will act as an extension of the Player's Handbook (PHB), with update to 3.5.
- all Game-Rules (not fluff) from the Iron Kingdoms Character Guide (IK) will be used, with minor editing and the exclusion of the more complex mechanics.
- some rules (including Action Points), races (Warforged), feats, magical items & classes from the Eberron Campaign Setting will appear; see DM for final calls.
- setting-specific rules changes have been implemented. DM's call is final.
The game's flavor will be equal parts 'Firefly'/'Serenity', 'Pirates of the Caribbean' and 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' - this may be read as: stylish, gritty sci-fi & magic mix, with low monsters, high fantasy and many human(oid) villains, involving complex plots and character-driven action.
- Firearms, in the interest of common use, will be treated as Martial Weapons as well as Ninja/Rogue weapons (but not Scout weapons); any character beginning the game proficient in all martial weapons or all Ninja/Rogue weapons may take the Flaw: Firearm Ineptitude, in which case the weapon becomes Exotic.
- in the interest of gritty, cinematic combat & action, every creatures massive-damage threshold will be equal to their Constitution score plus their hit dice.
- failure of massive-damage rolls will result in the character falling to -1d10 hp and beginning to bleed out; however, a result of 10 will indicate that the character has fallen to zero hit points and is merely disabled, not dying. Spot or Listen combined with a Heal check will be required to ascertain the condition of the fallen combatant.
- in deference to accepted Dave's-House rules, all characters will have a maximum negative hit point total equal to their Constitution score.
- to promote role-play and connected plot-line, the Reputation campaign-variant (Unearthed Arcana pg. 184) will be used, with Reputation (never Action Points) occasionally given as player and character reward in addition to Treasure and XP.
- because the focus on Divine Power/Divine Intervention will be kept minimal within 'Tale of the Comet', d20-Modern's "Treat Injury" rules (including the Surgery feat) will supplement the possible results of Heal checks.
Other sources of game-flavor will include China Meivilles The Scar, R.A. Salvatores Dark Elf Trilogy, Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson, Star Wars episodes 4 through 6, the Alien franchise, and the films The Abyss, Master and Commander, Brotherhood of the Wolf and Princess Bride.
Supplemental Spelljammer-Specific Information: Worlds
- Entries for dragons on all worlds are considered to be apocryphal: all dragons are unique, exceedingly rare, and dying out.
- The Pyre, the star at the center of the system, is surrounded at the height of its solar-flare range by massive earth-bergs forming a thin ring upon which some fire-immune creatures reside. Conditions here are fire-dominant and high-gravity (halved Jump distances, 1d8 falling damage per 10 feet fallen).
- Ashen is, despite its size, normal-gravity; it uses all of the supplemental rules of the 'Sandstorm' expansion & is home to Thri-Kreen rather than jann.
- Verdura is low-gravity (double Jump distances, 1d4 falling damage), and Yuan-ti dominance of the planet is contested by trolls and half-trolls.
- Quelya has one continent, the Green Lands, the size and shape of a combined Italy, France, Spain and Portugal: it is ruled over by several Yondallan merchant houses this includes the nation and city of Arvoreen (Spain/Madrid) with its Grand Vatican, their neighbor Brandobaris (Italy) which contains the Freehold of Lagos, far-off Cyrrollalee (Ireland), and cold, northern Urogalan (Iceland). All other landmass is island or island-chain (Philippines, Madagascar, Jamaica, Hawaii, etc.) occupied mostly by humans.
The legendary Aarakocra populate some small island peaks.
Additional exports planetary exports include tobacco.
- Perianth is low-gravity and has an Anime-Forest feel, rather than a real-world forest atmosphere. There is no sustained agriculture fey provide food to Sovereign Elven House Lords in exchange for protection from the forests many dangers.
- The Spider Moon is low-gravity and is considered 'Low Peak' (DMG pg. 90) for purposes of altitude thin air unless underground.
- The Chain of Tears is occupied by Neogi, rather than by Formians (see below) in all other ways, the two are interchangeable (travel via stone ships, dispersement, attitude). It is an incomplete Asteroid Belt, stretching only halfway around its orbit.
- Moradin's Forge has thirteen moons, named for Moradin's family (see FR: Faiths & Pantheons, pg. 2 & pg. 115), although most are uninhabitable & unexplored. Moradin's Forge is treated as high-gravity; in addition, much of the surface is considered Low Peak & uses all appropriate rules from 'Frostbite'.
Supplemental Spelljammer-Specific Information: Equipment
- all Firearm rules are as presented in Iron Kingdoms, in effect over-writing, removing & replacing the spittergun and standard pistols & rifles of the SJ main rulebook; scatterguns and flameguns from Spelljammer remain, and remain Exotic for all classes. In addition, the Exotic Weapon 'Grenade Launcher' is available.
- as pictured on page 48 of Spelljammer, airsuits do NOT require a filter - they may be deployed using a manual bellow system, which are priced as turrets and require two stout men to work the pumps - rubber tubing costs and price are identical to silken rope.
- airsuits have a -2 armor-check penalty, masterwork airsuits (+150 gp) a -1 armor-check penalty, and skin-tight Mithral-craft airsuits (+9,000 gp) have none.
- all Spelljammer Helms must be 'ignited' with the expenditure of a 0th-level spell. Lifejammer Helms need not.
Supplemental Spelljammer-Specific Information: Classes
Psionic classes are not available in Spelljammer. All classes from the PHB, Eberron core rulebook and the Complete books may be taken, with some exceptions: Spellthief does not exist in Spelljammer, nor does Spirit Shaman. Samurai has been removed and replaced with Swashbuckler for the Elves, and Warlocks & Warmages are either so rare as to be unheard of or simply replaced by Gun Mages. Iron Kingdoms and Heroes of Horror core classes are allowed, although Eberrons Artificer takes the place of IKs Arcane Mechanic.
Additionally:
Bard - while singers and professional actors are, if anything, MORE prevalent, bards do not exist as a playable class in 'Tale of the Comet' - their Inspiration ability is mirrored (more flavorfully) in the Fell-Caller core class and by the Storykeeper (which also gains the Lore ability) & the Stellar Corsair prestige classes; players desperate to Perform publicly may take Expert levels and spend skill points accordingly.
Druid - more savage spirit that flesh, dread reminders of a more brutal age, druids are universally, within the text of 'Spelljammer: Tale of the Comet', of the Druidic Avenger variant found in Unearthed Arcana on page 51 - in summation, they gain no Animal Companion, may not spontaneously channel stored spell energy into Summoning spells (they may take a feat to do so), and suffer a -4 on all Handle Animal/Wild Empathy rolls; in return, they may Rage as a barbarian and gain a permanent +10 to base land movement (this stacks with Barbarian levels). In addition, all druids are Ascetic - characters must take both the feats Sacred Vow and Vow of Poverty in order to take levels in the class, although they gain all of the benefits of both. Note: because it now acts as a class restriction, those who would take Vow of Poverty or Sacred Vow no longer need be good aligned, and many are not.
Clerics - the majority (90%) of all priests or clergy in 'Tale of the Comet' are merely Experts with Knowledge: Religion as a Skill Focus. While true divine blessing is not unheard of, it is rare & often secreted away: the Cloistered Cleric variant (UA: pg. 50) is the most common form of divine spell-caster, although standard clerics (referred to as Battle-Chaplains), Favored Souls (Complete Divine, pg. 7), and Shugenja (among the Elves Compete Divine pg. 10) are well-known if not often seen.
Supplemental Spelljammer-Specific Information: Races
Humans come in many different colors, in many different sizes, and worship many, many gods in addition, they are the only playable race with multiple racial languages. Bloodline traits are open to them. The most versatile of all races, Humans may take levels in ANY core class (including Artificer, Gun Mage and Bodger but excluding Fell Caller) with DM approval.
Humans may not marry into Halfling families or merchant houses, which leaves most humans permanently at the bottom of the Quelyan economic food chain.
- Captain Malcolm Reynolds, Zo (Firefly) and Captain Jack Sparrow (Pirates) are good examples of humans.
Drow are universally an angry lot of sociopaths, but they have little cohesion as a people they may be hired as assassins, Dread Necromancers, researchers and pilots, including in campaigns against their own people. All rules regarding Elves also apply to Drow, including Noble House.
- Barbossa (Pirates) and The Operative (Serenity) are good examples of drow.
Dwarves may be Fell Callers, and battle-chaplain clerics & paladins are more common among the stout folk than among any other race.
- Booke (Firefly) is a good example of a dwarf.
Elves use all the Oriental Adventures rules, although Samurai is universally switched out for Swashbuckler. Elves also require food, water and air as small creatures. Elves may take Genasi, Aasimar or Tiefling traits in addition to Grey Elf traits any elf who differs from standard High Elf is considered Noble and must choose a House, which may be distinguished visibly by other Elves. Elves are also significantly taller than humans, rather than shorter their base height is 5 5, rather than 4 5.
Because elves have no clerics, only Shugenja, it stands that they have no true deities in fact, they serve (and are served by) spirits. The immortal Corellon Larathian, head of House Larethian, is considered the greatest of spirit-binders.
Oriental Adventures/Legend of the Five Rings Clans are listed, along with the Elven Houses that each one is replaced by (and the Drow version of that same House):
Crab: House Hadaka (Hadaka-no-Oni) shadowy spell-casters and architects
Crane: House Ariel (Typhon) smooth-speaking artists, dancers and generals
Dragon: House Meraux (Unseelie-Meraux) master duelists with silver tongues
Lion: House Akodo-Dzur (Kotoku-Dzur) fearsome, fearless warriors of instinct
Phoenix: House Larethian (Lolth) disciplined, diplomatic scholars and spell-casters
Scorpion: House Fleuris (DoUrden) clever, deceitful and degenerate demonologists
Unicorn: House Shinjo (Jigoku) strong, intuitive magicians with cool heads
- Inara, Simon and River (Firefly) are good examples of elves.
Gnomes have no clerics, but do have many Archivists (HoH) and the greatest tradition of arcane spell casting of any race. Replacing their stats from the PHP, their racial traits are as such:
Int. +2, Str. -2; +2 on all craft checks; small creature; low-light vision; Survival and Hide always in-class; immune to environmental temperatures between 0 and 110 degrees Fahrenheit, bonus languages: Old Gnomish & Dwarven; Favored Class: all arcane spell-casting classes. Male 28, Female 27 (+2d4 inches); Male 30 lbs., Female 27 lbs. (+ height modifier x 1 lbs.)
Nearly half of all gnomish pregnancies result in twins, and triplets are nearly as common among gnomes as twins are among humans.
Gnomes have no sense of worship, but they do have a deep and metaphorical storytelling tradition which stretches back to the time of their worlds pre-history and which borders on the spiritual. Common tales (upon which every storyteller is expected to add his or her own twists) often deal with stock characters like Mother Kindness, The Child Dreamer, the clown-like twins Mocho & Pocho (Mocho eats too much, Pocho drinks too much), Mister Hubris (an easily tricked, Devil-went-down-to-Georgia kind of villain), Cleverest Nye and the giant, Mean-Old-Two-Heads.
- Kaylee, Niska, Wash (Firefly) and Twigg (Pirates) are good examples of gnomes.
Half-Elves are a relative rarity throughout the system, always the product of a male elf and female human union: while elven females will take human lovers, both male and female, elven women must maintain a strict, meditative concentration to actually achieve pregnancy accidental fertilization of elven women is impossible, and even the act of impregnation is discomforting enough that no elven female will do such a thing without sound usually political reason. Half-elves are often raised in orphanages or by single human mothers, are never nobility within Elven society, and have little group unity. They age as humans.
Half-Drow, universally the product of savage Drow attacks on isolated human settlements, are even more rare more than half of those who are born are killed at birth.
The question of how it is that humans and elves may interbreed and produced viable offspring has puzzled scholars of both races.
- Will Turner (Pirates) is a good example of a Half-Elf.
Half-Orcs were genetically engineered by the Illithid to act as a more perfect slave-stock than dwarves, orcs, or other monstrous-humanoids, and have escaped their bondage to breed true: the product of any mating involving half-orcs (human/half-orc, orc/half-orc or half-orc/half-orc) is always half-orc their genome is nearly viral in this regard. They may be Fell-Callers.
- Niskas leg-breaker Crow, Jayne (Firefly) and Bo sun (Pirates) are good examples of Half-Orcs.
Halflings are the undisputed rulers of Quelya above the waves, thanks much to their ingenuity in social organization & bountiful harvests even in barren lands. Their vast monotheistic religion is basically Buddhist with the trappings of Spanish Islam and Catholicism they pray often, all Halfling homes contain a shrine to Yondalla, and their priests and nuns may not marry, but their laity are expected to produce many, many children. Status within the Church is of paramount importance.
- Governor Swann, Elizabeth Swan, Commodore Norrington (Pirates), and Badger (Firefly) are good examples of Halflings.
Warforged were designed to act as adaptable, dependable assistants for Chain-bound gnomes, including the best possible defense against Neogi (and later, Illithid) incursions into gnome-space: as such, they receive an additional +4 bonus on all Will Saves versus mind-affecting abilities used by aberrations. They may take levels in any classes which gnomes are allowed. Additionally, warforged may not be resurrected without complete corruption of their mind, body and soul.
- Data (Star Trek), C3-PO (Star Wars), the T-800 (Terminator), and Bishop (Aliens) are all good examples of possible warforged archetypes, but many other interpretations are possible.
Supplemental Spelljammer-Specific Information: Feats and Flaws
Feats:
Spell-Boost (Action): 1 action point, +2 caster level as free action
Spell-Recall (Action): 1 action point, recall spell as swift action
Grace of Leshay (Elven, All Houses): Katana is light weapon must still be wielded two-handed unless user also has Exotic 'Weapon Proficiency: Bastard Sword'
Flaws:
Unless otherwise noted, flaws with specific subtypes (such as Fighter, Divine, Item Creation or Meta-Magic) may ONLY be exchanged for feats of the same kind, not General feats. These act as supplement to the general Flaws from Unearthed Arcana.
Moderate Phobia (see pg. 61-61, HoH): character begins play with a phobia appropriate to his background may not be removed through role-play, but may be bought off with the expenditure of a Feat.
Un-Combat Reflexes: character may not ever make attacks of opportunity
Single-Language Speaker: character begins play knowing and speaking only one native language he may learn to interpret other languages, haltingly, at regular cost, but cannot read, write or speak them intelligibly. This Flaw must be bought off before any other languages may be learned.
Susceptible to Taint [Divine]: character acquires a Taint Score
Armor Incompatibility [Fighter]: may only be taken if character begins play, at character creation, with proficiency in all armors and all shields (excluding tower shields) the character from this point forward receives double armor-check penalty and double spell-check penalty (if applicable) for any armor worn.
Firearm Inept [Fighter]: may only be taken if character begins play, at character creation, proficient in all martial weapons or in all Rogue or Ninja weapons (but not Scout weapons) the character from this point forward treats all small arms (not cannons or ballista) as Exotic.
- send me mail at (my username above) at (gmail) dotcom.
- send me mail at (my username above) at (gmail) dotcom.
The game's core will be Dungeons & Dragons ver. 3.5, including all applicable official d20 supplements & errata all non-WoC material will be subject to approval before incorporation into the mechanics.
- for the purposes of the game, Polyhedron #151 (SJ) will act as an extension of the Player's Handbook (PHB), with update to 3.5.
- all Game-Rules (not fluff) from the Iron Kingdoms Character Guide (IK) will be used, with minor editing and the exclusion of the more complex mechanics.
- some rules (including Action Points), races (Warforged), feats, magical items & classes from the Eberron Campaign Setting will appear; see DM for final calls.
- setting-specific rules changes have been implemented. DM's call is final.
The game's flavor will be equal parts 'Firefly'/'Serenity', 'Pirates of the Caribbean' and 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' - this may be read as: stylish, gritty sci-fi & magic mix, with low monsters, high fantasy and many human(oid) villains, involving complex plots and character-driven action.
- Firearms, in the interest of common use, will be treated as Martial Weapons as well as Ninja/Rogue weapons (but not Scout weapons); any character beginning the game proficient in all martial weapons or all Ninja/Rogue weapons may take the Flaw: Firearm Ineptitude, in which case the weapon becomes Exotic.
- in the interest of gritty, cinematic combat & action, every creatures massive-damage threshold will be equal to their Constitution score plus their hit dice.
- failure of massive-damage rolls will result in the character falling to -1d10 hp and beginning to bleed out; however, a result of 10 will indicate that the character has fallen to zero hit points and is merely disabled, not dying. Spot or Listen combined with a Heal check will be required to ascertain the condition of the fallen combatant.
- in deference to accepted Dave's-House rules, all characters will have a maximum negative hit point total equal to their Constitution score.
- to promote role-play and connected plot-line, the Reputation campaign-variant (Unearthed Arcana pg. 184) will be used, with Reputation (never Action Points) occasionally given as player and character reward in addition to Treasure and XP.
- because the focus on Divine Power/Divine Intervention will be kept minimal within 'Tale of the Comet', d20-Modern's "Treat Injury" rules (including the Surgery feat) will supplement the possible results of Heal checks.
Other sources of game-flavor will include China Meivilles The Scar, R.A. Salvatores Dark Elf Trilogy, Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson, Star Wars episodes 4 through 6, the Alien franchise, and the films The Abyss, Master and Commander, Brotherhood of the Wolf and Princess Bride.
Supplemental Spelljammer-Specific Information: Worlds
- Entries for dragons on all worlds are considered to be apocryphal: all dragons are unique, exceedingly rare, and dying out.
- The Pyre, the star at the center of the system, is surrounded at the height of its solar-flare range by massive earth-bergs forming a thin ring upon which some fire-immune creatures reside. Conditions here are fire-dominant and high-gravity (halved Jump distances, 1d8 falling damage per 10 feet fallen).
- Ashen is, despite its size, normal-gravity; it uses all of the supplemental rules of the 'Sandstorm' expansion & is home to Thri-Kreen rather than jann.
- Verdura is low-gravity (double Jump distances, 1d4 falling damage), and Yuan-ti dominance of the planet is contested by trolls and half-trolls.
- Quelya has one continent, the Green Lands, the size and shape of a combined Italy, France, Spain and Portugal: it is ruled over by several Yondallan merchant houses this includes the nation and city of Arvoreen (Spain/Madrid) with its Grand Vatican, their neighbor Brandobaris (Italy) which contains the Freehold of Lagos, far-off Cyrrollalee (Ireland), and cold, northern Urogalan (Iceland). All other landmass is island or island-chain (Philippines, Madagascar, Jamaica, Hawaii, etc.) occupied mostly by humans.
The legendary Aarakocra populate some small island peaks.
Additional exports planetary exports include tobacco.
- Perianth is low-gravity and has an Anime-Forest feel, rather than a real-world forest atmosphere. There is no sustained agriculture fey provide food to Sovereign Elven House Lords in exchange for protection from the forests many dangers.
- The Spider Moon is low-gravity and is considered 'Low Peak' (DMG pg. 90) for purposes of altitude thin air unless underground.
- The Chain of Tears is occupied by Neogi, rather than by Formians (see below) in all other ways, the two are interchangeable (travel via stone ships, dispersement, attitude). It is an incomplete Asteroid Belt, stretching only halfway around its orbit.
- Moradin's Forge has thirteen moons, named for Moradin's family (see FR: Faiths & Pantheons, pg. 2 & pg. 115), although most are uninhabitable & unexplored. Moradin's Forge is treated as high-gravity; in addition, much of the surface is considered Low Peak & uses all appropriate rules from 'Frostbite'.
Supplemental Spelljammer-Specific Information: Equipment
- all Firearm rules are as presented in Iron Kingdoms, in effect over-writing, removing & replacing the spittergun and standard pistols & rifles of the SJ main rulebook; scatterguns and flameguns from Spelljammer remain, and remain Exotic for all classes. In addition, the Exotic Weapon 'Grenade Launcher' is available.
- as pictured on page 48 of Spelljammer, airsuits do NOT require a filter - they may be deployed using a manual bellow system, which are priced as turrets and require two stout men to work the pumps - rubber tubing costs and price are identical to silken rope.
- airsuits have a -2 armor-check penalty, masterwork airsuits (+150 gp) a -1 armor-check penalty, and skin-tight Mithral-craft airsuits (+9,000 gp) have none.
- all Spelljammer Helms must be 'ignited' with the expenditure of a 0th-level spell. Lifejammer Helms need not.
Supplemental Spelljammer-Specific Information: Classes
Psionic classes are not available in Spelljammer. All classes from the PHB, Eberron core rulebook and the Complete books may be taken, with some exceptions: Spellthief does not exist in Spelljammer, nor does Spirit Shaman. Samurai has been removed and replaced with Swashbuckler for the Elves, and Warlocks & Warmages are either so rare as to be unheard of or simply replaced by Gun Mages. Iron Kingdoms and Heroes of Horror core classes are allowed, although Eberrons Artificer takes the place of IKs Arcane Mechanic.
Additionally:
Bard - while singers and professional actors are, if anything, MORE prevalent, bards do not exist as a playable class in 'Tale of the Comet' - their Inspiration ability is mirrored (more flavorfully) in the Fell-Caller core class and by the Storykeeper (which also gains the Lore ability) & the Stellar Corsair prestige classes; players desperate to Perform publicly may take Expert levels and spend skill points accordingly.
Druid - more savage spirit that flesh, dread reminders of a more brutal age, druids are universally, within the text of 'Spelljammer: Tale of the Comet', of the Druidic Avenger variant found in Unearthed Arcana on page 51 - in summation, they gain no Animal Companion, may not spontaneously channel stored spell energy into Summoning spells (they may take a feat to do so), and suffer a -4 on all Handle Animal/Wild Empathy rolls; in return, they may Rage as a barbarian and gain a permanent +10 to base land movement (this stacks with Barbarian levels). In addition, all druids are Ascetic - characters must take both the feats Sacred Vow and Vow of Poverty in order to take levels in the class, although they gain all of the benefits of both. Note: because it now acts as a class restriction, those who would take Vow of Poverty or Sacred Vow no longer need be good aligned, and many are not.
Clerics - the majority (90%) of all priests or clergy in 'Tale of the Comet' are merely Experts with Knowledge: Religion as a Skill Focus. While true divine blessing is not unheard of, it is rare & often secreted away: the Cloistered Cleric variant (UA: pg. 50) is the most common form of divine spell-caster, although standard clerics (referred to as Battle-Chaplains), Favored Souls (Complete Divine, pg. 7), and Shugenja (among the Elves Compete Divine pg. 10) are well-known if not often seen.
Supplemental Spelljammer-Specific Information: Races
Humans come in many different colors, in many different sizes, and worship many, many gods in addition, they are the only playable race with multiple racial languages. Bloodline traits are open to them. The most versatile of all races, Humans may take levels in ANY core class (including Artificer, Gun Mage and Bodger but excluding Fell Caller) with DM approval.
Humans may not marry into Halfling families or merchant houses, which leaves most humans permanently at the bottom of the Quelyan economic food chain.
- Captain Malcolm Reynolds, Zo (Firefly) and Captain Jack Sparrow (Pirates) are good examples of humans.
Drow are universally an angry lot of sociopaths, but they have little cohesion as a people they may be hired as assassins, Dread Necromancers, researchers and pilots, including in campaigns against their own people. All rules regarding Elves also apply to Drow, including Noble House.
- Barbossa (Pirates) and The Operative (Serenity) are good examples of drow.
Dwarves may be Fell Callers, and battle-chaplain clerics & paladins are more common among the stout folk than among any other race.
- Booke (Firefly) is a good example of a dwarf.
Elves use all the Oriental Adventures rules, although Samurai is universally switched out for Swashbuckler. Elves also require food, water and air as small creatures. Elves may take Genasi, Aasimar or Tiefling traits in addition to Grey Elf traits any elf who differs from standard High Elf is considered Noble and must choose a House, which may be distinguished visibly by other Elves. Elves are also significantly taller than humans, rather than shorter their base height is 5 5, rather than 4 5.
Because elves have no clerics, only Shugenja, it stands that they have no true deities in fact, they serve (and are served by) spirits. The immortal Corellon Larathian, head of House Larethian, is considered the greatest of spirit-binders.
Oriental Adventures/Legend of the Five Rings Clans are listed, along with the Elven Houses that each one is replaced by (and the Drow version of that same House):
Crab: House Hadaka (Hadaka-no-Oni) shadowy spell-casters and architects
Crane: House Ariel (Typhon) smooth-speaking artists, dancers and generals
Dragon: House Meraux (Unseelie-Meraux) master duelists with silver tongues
Lion: House Akodo-Dzur (Kotoku-Dzur) fearsome, fearless warriors of instinct
Phoenix: House Larethian (Lolth) disciplined, diplomatic scholars and spell-casters
Scorpion: House Fleuris (DoUrden) clever, deceitful and degenerate demonologists
Unicorn: House Shinjo (Jigoku) strong, intuitive magicians with cool heads
- Inara, Simon and River (Firefly) are good examples of elves.
Gnomes have no clerics, but do have many Archivists (HoH) and the greatest tradition of arcane spell casting of any race. Replacing their stats from the PHP, their racial traits are as such:
Int. +2, Str. -2; +2 on all craft checks; small creature; low-light vision; Survival and Hide always in-class; immune to environmental temperatures between 0 and 110 degrees Fahrenheit, bonus languages: Old Gnomish & Dwarven; Favored Class: all arcane spell-casting classes. Male 28, Female 27 (+2d4 inches); Male 30 lbs., Female 27 lbs. (+ height modifier x 1 lbs.)
Nearly half of all gnomish pregnancies result in twins, and triplets are nearly as common among gnomes as twins are among humans.
Gnomes have no sense of worship, but they do have a deep and metaphorical storytelling tradition which stretches back to the time of their worlds pre-history and which borders on the spiritual. Common tales (upon which every storyteller is expected to add his or her own twists) often deal with stock characters like Mother Kindness, The Child Dreamer, the clown-like twins Mocho & Pocho (Mocho eats too much, Pocho drinks too much), Mister Hubris (an easily tricked, Devil-went-down-to-Georgia kind of villain), Cleverest Nye and the giant, Mean-Old-Two-Heads.
- Kaylee, Niska, Wash (Firefly) and Twigg (Pirates) are good examples of gnomes.
Half-Elves are a relative rarity throughout the system, always the product of a male elf and female human union: while elven females will take human lovers, both male and female, elven women must maintain a strict, meditative concentration to actually achieve pregnancy accidental fertilization of elven women is impossible, and even the act of impregnation is discomforting enough that no elven female will do such a thing without sound usually political reason. Half-elves are often raised in orphanages or by single human mothers, are never nobility within Elven society, and have little group unity. They age as humans.
Half-Drow, universally the product of savage Drow attacks on isolated human settlements, are even more rare more than half of those who are born are killed at birth.
The question of how it is that humans and elves may interbreed and produced viable offspring has puzzled scholars of both races.
- Will Turner (Pirates) is a good example of a Half-Elf.
Half-Orcs were genetically engineered by the Illithid to act as a more perfect slave-stock than dwarves, orcs, or other monstrous-humanoids, and have escaped their bondage to breed true: the product of any mating involving half-orcs (human/half-orc, orc/half-orc or half-orc/half-orc) is always half-orc their genome is nearly viral in this regard. They may be Fell-Callers.
- Niskas leg-breaker Crow, Jayne (Firefly) and Bo sun (Pirates) are good examples of Half-Orcs.
Halflings are the undisputed rulers of Quelya above the waves, thanks much to their ingenuity in social organization & bountiful harvests even in barren lands. Their vast monotheistic religion is basically Buddhist with the trappings of Spanish Islam and Catholicism they pray often, all Halfling homes contain a shrine to Yondalla, and their priests and nuns may not marry, but their laity are expected to produce many, many children. Status within the Church is of paramount importance.
- Governor Swann, Elizabeth Swan, Commodore Norrington (Pirates), and Badger (Firefly) are good examples of Halflings.
Warforged were designed to act as adaptable, dependable assistants for Chain-bound gnomes, including the best possible defense against Neogi (and later, Illithid) incursions into gnome-space: as such, they receive an additional +4 bonus on all Will Saves versus mind-affecting abilities used by aberrations. They may take levels in any classes which gnomes are allowed. Additionally, warforged may not be resurrected without complete corruption of their mind, body and soul.
- Data (Star Trek), C3-PO (Star Wars), the T-800 (Terminator), and Bishop (Aliens) are all good examples of possible warforged archetypes, but many other interpretations are possible.
Supplemental Spelljammer-Specific Information: Feats and Flaws
Feats:
Spell-Boost (Action): 1 action point, +2 caster level as free action
Spell-Recall (Action): 1 action point, recall spell as swift action
Grace of Leshay (Elven, All Houses): Katana is light weapon must still be wielded two-handed unless user also has Exotic 'Weapon Proficiency: Bastard Sword'
Flaws:
Unless otherwise noted, flaws with specific subtypes (such as Fighter, Divine, Item Creation or Meta-Magic) may ONLY be exchanged for feats of the same kind, not General feats. These act as supplement to the general Flaws from Unearthed Arcana.
Moderate Phobia (see pg. 61-61, HoH): character begins play with a phobia appropriate to his background may not be removed through role-play, but may be bought off with the expenditure of a Feat.
Un-Combat Reflexes: character may not ever make attacks of opportunity
Single-Language Speaker: character begins play knowing and speaking only one native language he may learn to interpret other languages, haltingly, at regular cost, but cannot read, write or speak them intelligibly. This Flaw must be bought off before any other languages may be learned.
Susceptible to Taint [Divine]: character acquires a Taint Score
Armor Incompatibility [Fighter]: may only be taken if character begins play, at character creation, with proficiency in all armors and all shields (excluding tower shields) the character from this point forward receives double armor-check penalty and double spell-check penalty (if applicable) for any armor worn.
Firearm Inept [Fighter]: may only be taken if character begins play, at character creation, proficient in all martial weapons or in all Rogue or Ninja weapons (but not Scout weapons) the character from this point forward treats all small arms (not cannons or ballista) as Exotic.
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