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View Full Version : Erraow: 4e race (Peachy, of course)



Erk
2009-01-06, 07:22 PM
Design backgroundMy friend requested this race, based on a race from her old 3e game. I tried to make something fairly original, so I'd like some critique on a lot of the powers, please-and-thank-you. Hope you enjoy!

Erraow (called Cats or Catfolk by most other races) look like cats, only larger and mainly bipedal. No, I am not talking about pretty girls with ears and tails. Furry, whiskered felines that stand a bit hunched and run on all fours. Catfolk look essentially like their fourlegged cousins, but have much more thickly muscled legs and lower bodies, and are generally comfortable walking on their hind legs. Their paws (hand and foot) have opposable thumblike claws.

The Erraow mainly worship Greebo (Grreebau in their own tongue), a god of alleys and dark paths. Greebo is unaligned, and cares little for races other than his chosen catfolk, although occasionally he will accept a halfling or other small-sized creature into his service. Some Erraow in cities have also taken up respect for the gods of the larger races; those that do are viewed with heavy disdain by the more traditional Greebo-worshippers. Greebo's cats, for that matter, view their own god with a smattering of disdain, but of an affectionate sort.

Erraow have few permanent settlements of their own, living mainly in subcommunities among the larger races. They are fairly well accepted by other small species, but find themselves ill-treated by larger civilised creatures. Many Erraow serve as slaves and even pets to humans, and many more live as second-class citizens in slums. Generally, the "alleycat" Erraow are proud, haughty, and do not recognise their lack of status. In only a few cities have the Erraow earned a place of honour and distinction as another civilised race. Most of these places are, coincidentally, areas with high populations of halflings. Erraow and Halflings get along extremely well.

Their fanged mouths and coarse tongues make it very difficult for Erraow to learn Common, a problem tightly related to their mistreatment by other races. Those few that do learn Common find they have much less difficulty integrating into "higher" society.

(Nature DC 15) Traditionally, Erraow were a savage race, living in the wilderness. Though wild, savage Erraow are cunning and deadly, and highly territorial. Weaker tribes learned they could survive living off the scraps of civilisation, and gradually became more accepting of foreign races, until they became integrated into other settlements.

(History DC 20) Rumour has it that the Erraow are a very young species, created through powerful rituals as the servant race of a long-dead wizard. After their creator's death, they spread and reproduced and became much more than simple magical constructs. The Erraow themselves consider this a blasphemous suggestion. At GM's discretion for if this rumour is true, History DC 25: additional sources have suggested that the rumour was started by anti-Erraow sentiment in some communities, to cement their role as a lesser race. While they are certainly a young race, their actual origin is unknown.

(Religion DC 25) The Erraow god, Grreebau, has been around long before the catfolk became common. However, before the catfolk made their presence known, he was merely a minor felinoid nature spirit. Since then, with his worshippers' numbers increasing, he has become far more potent.

RACIAL TRAITS
Average height: 0.8-1.2m (2'8" to 4")
Average weight: 10-25 kg (22-55 lbs)

Ability scores: +2 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom
Size: Small
Speed: 6 squares
Vision: Low-light Vision

Languages: Erraow, choice of one other (NOTE: Most PC Erraow should choose Common.)
Skill bonuses: +2 athletics, +2 acrobatics
Pointy bits: You have retractable claws, which can be used as formidable natural weapons. See claws, below
Nine Lives: At character creation, you may use First Life: Uncanny Avoidance as an encounter power.
Scamper: When running or charging, increase your speed by an additional square.

Claws
Your retractable claws are a natural weapon. At character creation, choose if your claw attacks are Str- or Dex- based. Your claws are considered a Light Blade weapon, with a +3 proficiency bonus and the offhand feature. They deal 1d4 damage. You may make basic attacks using either Str- or Dex, whichever you chose at creation. Bonuses applying to the use of daggers also apply to your claws (for example, rogue weapon talent).

First Life: Uncanny Avoidance
Encounter * Erraow Life
Immediate Interrupt, Personal
Trigger: You take damage from a fall or a trap
Effect: You may negate damage from the trigger, up to your bloodied value.
Special: You may only use one "Erraow Life" power per encounter.

Racial Feats

Feline Finesse
Prerequisites: Erraow, Dex-based claw weapon
Benefits: You may use your Dex modifier in place of Str on attack rolls for any weapon-based ability, as long as you use your claws as the weapon.

Fourth Life: Staredown (Paragon)
Prerequisites: Erraow, must have been raised from the dead at least once, Level 11+
Benefit: You gain the use of the Staredown "Erraow Life" power.
Fourth Life: Staredown
You lock unblinking eyes on your opponent. Something in your stare chills them to the bone.
Encounter * Erraow Life
Minor action, ranged 10
Target: One creature
Attack: Int, Wis, or Cha vs. Will (choose one attribute when taking this feat)
Hit: You and the target are both immobilised (save ends). You may end this effect as a free action. The target may not take advantage of any creatures granting it Combat Advantage for as long as it is immobilised, and cannot take actions against creatures on the opposite side of it from you.
Special: You may only use one "Erraow Life" power per encounter.

Greebo's Opportunism (Channel Divinity)
Prerequisites: Channel Divinity class feature, must worship Greebo
Benefit: You may use the Greebo's Opportunism Channel Divinity power.
Channel Divnity: Greebo's Opportunism

Encounter * Divine, Weapon
Standard Action, Personal
Special: At least one creature must be granting you combat advantage.
Effect: You may use any encounter ability you possess against the creature granting you combat advantage. This use does not count towards "using up" your encounter abilities. If the ability normally targets more than one creature, only allies (if they are normally at risk) and creatures granting you combat advantage are susceptible targets.

Second Life: Scamper
Prerequisites: Erraow, must have been dropped to 0HP at least once.
Benefit: You gain the use of the Scamper "Erraow Life" power.
Second Life: Scamper
Quickly sheathing your weapon, you drop to all fours and dart across the battlefield.
Encounter * Erraow Life
Move action, Personal
Effect: You put away any items held in your hands, and move a number of squares equal to your run speed plus your dexterity modifier, without any of the normal penalties of running. You may add your bonus to Acrobatics to your defenses against any one Opportunity Attack you provoke from this movement (declare after the attack roll is made).
Special: You may only use one "Erraow Life" power per encounter.

Silent Hunter
Prerequisites: Erraow, Dex 13+
Benefits: +2 feat bonus to Perception, Stealth, and Initiative.

Third Life: Rubber Spine
Prerequisites: Erraow, must have been reduced to 0 HP at least twice in the same encounter or raised from the dead once.
Benefit:You gain the use of the Rubber Spine "Erraow Life" power.
Third Life: Rubber Spine
Your body is almost preternaturally flexible. You happily backflip away from attacks.
Encounter * Erraow Life
Immediate interrupt, personal
Trigger: You are hit by an attack which targets your reflex defense.
Effect: Any conditions limiting your movement end, and you gain a +4 to your reflex save until the end of your next turn. If the triggering attack now misses you as a result of your increased reflex, you may shift a number of squares equal to your Dex modifier (minimum 2) as a free action.
Special: You may only use one "Erraow Life" power per encounter.

(note: other erraow life powers will be paragon and epic tier: 4,5,6 paragon, 7,8,9 epic. I haven't written them yet.)

Feline Facility (Paragon)
Prerequisites: Erraow, level 11+, Dex-based claw weapon
Benefits: You may use your Dex modifier in place of Str on damage for any weapon-based ability, as long as you use your claws as the weapon.

Lorien077
2009-01-06, 11:49 PM
I know nothing about 4e, but I just wanted to say the fluff is wonderful. >_>;;

Inyssius Tor
2009-01-06, 11:55 PM
Long-dead witch, surely? :smallbiggrin:

EDIT: Also, I like it. There have been a lot of takes on 4e catfolk recently (weeeird), but this one is the most interesting one I've seen.

Erk
2009-01-07, 12:46 AM
Hey, thanks. Glad you like the fluff. Here is how I described it to the player: Erraow as viewed from their own perspective.

Your people are generally considered a young race, though of course you don't consider yourselves one. It's rare among the Erraow to find someone with the patience to learn to fit her tongue around the flitty, clipped sounds of Common languages, and that's where a lot of the prejudice starts.

Civilized Erraow live on the fringes of the other races' society: in back alleys, under bridges. In the forgotten places where other people never look. There, you build realms. Kingdoms, in your own way. An abandoned warehouse with a castle made of cardboard and scrap wood, cunningly decorated with elegant claw carvings. A network of floating houses under the wharfs, just above the high water line. These are the places of the Catfolk. Knowing you can never stay in one place long, you make nests as elabourate and beautiful as you can for that short time.

Grreebau watches you and helps you, keeps your sanctums hidden and safe from the prying fingers of the larger folk. When they do uncover you, they never react well. Some drive you out, and that is lucky. Others slaughter your kind. Still others enslave you, selling you as servants or even pets.

Of course, it's not always so bad. There are larger folk who do accept you. The best are the halflings, who find themselves often in contact with you. Many halfling societies form symbiotic lives with Erraow subcities, creating a layered underworld in the alleys of the city.

Somber Requiem
2009-01-07, 02:27 AM
It's not quite popping for me. It seems sort of a generic embodiment of cattiness that doesn't quite make it. The name starts off as awkward. Too many vowels. I suspect that you're trying to present their name as a feline phonetic. Elves likely don't call themselves "elves" in elvish, so it would help to name them something a little less phonetically convoluted.

Next, there's a certain flavor that's missing. When I think of cats I think of independance, aloofness, grace, and a certain co-dependancy. It sounds as if you're trying to make one species fit memes for both wildcats and house cats. They're apples and oranges. Cats wouldn't care why they exist, and I don't see a cat giving anything but lipservice to a diety, if even that. Their social role seems appropriate as outsiders, but the presentation seems off. Cats are horrible slaves; just ask anyone that has one as a pet. Dogs as slaves, sure. Cats? I'm not seeing it. Now your homid felines serving as 'pets' seems much more believable. After all, a pet gets a sweet deal. Also I doubt alley cats would see themselves as disadvantaged. They'd probably be quite proud of their 'independance.'

My suggestion? If the player is making an urban based character then go with an arcane creation; they're a transmuter's experiment that escaped and bred true. They're rare, found only in a few cities and territories; not a world wide established race. If you have to have 'ferals' then so be it; but wild cats are not social outside of lions.

As far as the language thing, if it doesn't have an in game effect then take it out. Hard enough to get a psychological grasp when you're not sure if you can or can't speak the standard language of humans. With your pairing they're going to take their racial language and.... probably common. Otherwise just comment that the shape of the muzzle gives them strong accents that can be difficult to understand no matter what language they speak.

Stats. Dex and Cats go hand in hand. Wis? Not seeing it. While cats can be clever and have strong personalities, I would never describe a cat as wise. I'd make it Dex and Cha if you tweek the language trip, or Dex and Int if you really want to give them a speech impediment as a liability.

Thumbs. Do you REALLY have to create a whole table of equipment solely for this race? If you want them to only use small weapons then fine, make them a small sized race. But creating a complecated system based on not wanting them to have thumbs seems like a lot of trouble for little cultural or physical distinction.

Claws. A dagger is a six inch blade of steel that does 1d4 damage. My cat, no matter how much damage she does to the couch, can not equal that. If these were lions, I could see it. As small cats I can not.

Armor. This is a fourth edition thing. Drop negatives. Short of movement speed or size, there isn't a single race with a detriment. Give them the same penalties or restrictions a halfling would suffer. If you want to comment on how they prefer flexible and light armor, so be it. If some player wants a full suit of articulated mithril full plate for their cat, make it possible. Also it is silly to require a ritual when magic armor itself does it automatically.

Speed. K.I.S.S. If their movement is 7... make it 7. I can certainly see it. Two legs, four legs, whatever. If it's six, then 6. If you want to give them a mobility enhancement then I would work it into a racial daily or feat daily or something. As is, to gain the extra square of movement I would have to put my equipment away, drop to all fours, "scamper" the distance, and use a minor action to get my equipment out again when I arrived there.

Vision. Cats run into walls when it's pitch black. I'd downgrade to low light.

Skills. Acrobatics? Absolutely. Athletics? Okay.

Racial: I really don't like it. I can count the number of times I've thrown 'pit traps' at my players on one hand. Unless there's a surplus of falling opportunities to be had I don't see this encounter power being very useful. How about, instead of an encounter power, Erraow reduce the amount of damage taken by 10 as simple damage resistance from falls? Simple. Straight forward. Gradable to 20 damage resistance at 11 and 30 damage resistance at 21st level.

Another idea for a racial encounter power would be something along the idea of 'scamper.' As a move action, the character can shift a number of square equal to their move / dex modifier / whatever arbitrary amount. During this move the Erraow gains a +5 competence bonus to acrobatics and athetics rolls till the end of their next turn.

Alot of the feats also don't work for me, but I think you've been PEACHed at enough.

Mando Knight
2009-01-07, 12:12 PM
Wis? Not seeing it. While cats can be clever and have strong personalities, I would never describe a cat as wise.

Cats are associated with heightened senses, which is the primary use for Wisdom (see Insight and Perception). They're also quite clever. The Martial Power "Cat" companion has 14 Str, 12 Con, 16 Dex, 6 Int, 14 Wis, and 6 Cha. Of these, the most likely racial bonuses are Strength, Dexterity, and Wisdom. Smaller cats are unlikely to have a bonus to Strength, so that leaves Dexterity and Wisdom.

Wisdom and Charisma simply don't know exactly what they are anymore, though. Goblin PCs get a Charisma boost though their NPC brethren have a penalty...

Erk
2009-01-09, 02:45 PM
I wrote this a couple days ago, but apparently the presence of the word “lynx” (sans quotes) was giving me a 403 access denied error when I tried to post. Thanks to the GiantITP staff I am saved and can finally reply. All the changes listed here were edited into first post a while ago, and I fleshed out fluff too.

---

First off, thanks for the long critique, somber, I've been waiting for someone to bite.


It's not quite popping for me. It seems sort of a generic embodiment of cattiness that doesn't quite make it. ... If you have to have 'ferals' then so be it; but wild cats are not social outside of lions. I think where we have a disconnect here is that first you assume I'm trying to make "embodiments of cattiness" and then pick apart where my creatures aren't "embodiments of cattiness". Catfolk (they aren't called Erraow by anyone else, but always call themselves Erraow out of pride; if you don't feel comfortable with all the vowels feel free to use the Common name) aren't housecats or wildcats. They're a social sentient animal with a close relationship to simpler cats. Thus, while I really appreciate it, most of your dislike of the race targets them not fitting a niche I didn't intend them to fit, so it's hard for me to take it at face value.

Regarding persecution vs. pettitude: alleycatfolk don't usually consider themselves having much of a bad rap at all. They build elabourate, complicated kingdoms under bridges and in condemned buildings. They think they've got it pretty sweet. However, the character for whom that 2nd person description was written isn't an alleycat, and she has a stronger sense of her peoples' social persecution. Regarding enslavement, well, I don't know how effective Catfolk would be as slaves, but better than housecats. Still, the difference is probably quite moot from the perspective of the “free” catfolk: they'd see “pets” and “slaves” as identical.


As far as the language thing, if it doesn't have an in game effect then take it out. Hard enough to get a psychological grasp when you're not sure if you can or can't speak the standard language of humans. With your pairing they're going to take their racial language and.... probably common. Otherwise just comment that the shape of the muzzle gives them strong accents that can be difficult to understand no matter what language they speak.Fair
enough, as a player race, I suppose. However, the vast majority of NPC Erraow don't speak common. I can move that point to the NPC listings, I suppose, and change the PC entry to note that almost all PC Catfolk use Common, perhaps.


Stats. Dex and Cats go hand in hand. Wis? Not seeing it. While cats can be clever and have strong personalities, I would never describe a cat as wise. I'd make it Dex and Cha if you tweek the language trip, or Dex and Int if you really want to give them a speech impediment as a liability.Regular cats are, however, very perceptive, and catfolk have considerably more wisdom and willpower than a housecat. Cha also works, but they already have plenty of cultural resemblance to Halflings; I don't really want to make another Halfling race.


Thumbs. Do you REALLY have to create a whole table of equipment solely for this race? If you want them to only use small weapons then fine, make them a small sized race. But creating a complecated system based on not wanting them to have thumbs seems like a lot of trouble for little cultural or physical distinction.

Armor. This is a fourth edition thing...Someone on WotC boards already noted that 4e armour is 1-size-fits-all. So you're right, fitting rules are not really necessary for RAW. I am using different house rules for armour fitting in this game, as the PCs are a cat, a halfling, and a dwarf; I probably shouldn't include anything related to them here. Removed.


Claws. A dagger is a six inch blade of steel that does 1d4 damage. My cat, no matter how much damage she does to the couch, can not equal that. If these were lions, I could see it. As small cats I can not. First, damage in D&D is typically a combination of skill and actual damage dealing potential. When I take Weapon Focus Dagger, my dagger doesn't get sharper; I get better at using it. Second and more important, look at other damage infliced by similar scaled creatures. The Tiny-sized Pseudodragon can inflict 1D8 on a bite attack, the equivalent of a longsword, and the wildcat entry for beast companions has the larger variety inflicting 1D8 as well. Catfolk are, sizewise, more in line with a ly... a bobcat, but built a little differently. Honestly, since according to Martial Power a bobcat would likely do 1d8 as well, I think I've actually cut the catfolk short for damage. I'm leaving it at 1d4 for now, but I may increase it to 1d6 or add a feat that increases the die size.


Speed. K.I.S.S. If their movement is 7... make it 7. I can certainly see it. Two legs, four legs, whatever. If it's six, then 6. If you want to give them a mobility enhancement then I would work it into a racial daily or feat daily or something. As is, to gain the extra square of movement I would have to put my equipment away, drop to all fours, "scamper" the distance, and use a minor action to get my equipment out again when I arrived there.It shouldn't be
treated as much different than an -1 to speed when wearing heavy armour. However, you're right. It is a little needlessly complex; I'm at a bit of an odd end here, since I'd like to have them faster when moving on all fours. I wonder if I should make them have a speed of six, but get +3 to speed when running/charging...


Vision. Cats run into walls when it's pitch black. I'd downgrade to low light.Good point. Changed.


Skills. Acrobatics? Absolutely. Athletics? Okay.It's that or stealth, kind of a tossup. Hence the skill bonus feat.


Racial: I really don't like it. I can count the number of times I've thrown 'pit traps' at my players on one hand. Unless there's a surplus of falling opportunities to be had I don't see this encounter power being very useful. How about, instead of an encounter power, Erraow reduce the amount of damage taken by 10 as simple damage resistance from falls? Simple. Straight forward. Gradable to 20 damage resistance at 11 and 30 damage resistance at 21st level.It's falling damage or traps, not falling damage from traps. I am actually worried about it being too useful, not the other way round.


Another idea for a racial encounter power would be something along the idea of 'scamper.' As a move action, the character can shift a number of square equal to their move / dex modifier / whatever arbitrary amount. During this move the Erraow gains a +5 competence bonus to acrobatics and athetics rolls till the end of their next turn.I have something like that on mind for a 9 lives power, possibly replacing 2nd life; staredown seems like at least a paragon ability to me, and then I can make it more potent. If I shift the Move bonus into running-only, then this would be a nice 2nd life feat to help get that speed back into play.


Alot of the feats also don't work for me, but I think you've been PEACHed at enough.Actually, the feats are what I am most concerned about. PEACH away!