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View Full Version : (3.x ed.) Races with 4+ arms



koeldflare
2009-02-22, 10:41 PM
Hey guys, like the thread title sais I'm looking for a race that has at lest 4 arms for an up and coming campaign that I'm PC'ing in.

Things I would like: -As little LA as possible (at most 2-3)
- As little racial Hit dice as possible.

So far my best choice seems to be a Thri-Keen. If there if a multi-armed template that had little LA I would love to know the source.

Books allowed: Any 3.0-3.5 Wizards books, and no other soures (no dragon mags or anything like that). If you list a race would you mind listing the sourcebook also?

Thanks!

NPCMook
2009-02-22, 10:53 PM
Savage Species Insectile Template +2 LA for +2 Natural Armor, 4+ Arms, and a bunch of other bonuses

Can be added to any Humanoid race

Darrin
2009-02-23, 12:07 AM
So far my best choice seems to be a Thri-Keen. If there if a multi-armed template that had little LA I would love to know the source.

Books allowed: Any 3.0-3.5 Wizards books, and no other soures (no dragon mags or anything like that). If you list a race would you mind listing the sourcebook also?


There's also the Diopsid in the Dragon Compendium, only LA +1. Technically it counts as Dragon Magazine material, but it did also appear in a 3.0 hardback sourcebook.

Tako in Oriental Adventures has 7 arms... ok, tentacles, really, but they have racial hit dice on top of LA.

If you want to go multiple arms with no LA, then try starting with two levels of Totemist, and bind the Girallon Arms soulmeld to your totem chakra.

Eldariel
2009-02-23, 01:36 AM
The non-psionic Thri-Kreen [MMII] is by far your best bet; LA +1, two hit dice and all the goodies you'd want (making them ECL 3). The HD is even Monstrous Humanoid HD, which just happen to be surprisingly good for Fighter-types: good Will-saves, good Ref-saves, full BAB.

NPCMook
2009-02-23, 02:30 AM
The Insectile Template can gives you a total of up to 6 arms, no extra attacks, Darkvision, Tremorsense, Wide Vision

Heliomance
2009-02-23, 02:58 AM
So if you play an Insectile Thri-Kreen and get the Girallon's Arms soulmeld and the Girallon's Blessing spell, you end up with 12 arms which can wield weapons. Arms of Plenty from Lords of Madness gives you another two arms, though they can't be used for weapons - unless you put Gloves of Man on them. Per Savage Species, every extra arm you use to hold a single weapon grants an additional .5 strength to damage - so by 12-handing a weapon, you get Weapon Damage+6.5*Str mod damage.

NPCMook
2009-02-23, 03:02 AM
So if you play an Insectile Thri-Kreen and get the Girallon's Arms soulmeld and the Girallon's Blessing spell, you end up with 12 arms which can wield weapons. Arms of Plenty from Lords of Madness gives you another two arms, though they can't be used for weapons - unless you put Gloves of Man on them. Per Savage Species, every extra arm you use to hold a single weapon grants an additional .5 strength to damage - so by 12-handing a weapon, you get Weapon Damage+6.5*Str mod damage.

Or hold 11 shields and 1 spear and do nothing but charge every turn

JackMage666
2009-02-23, 03:17 AM
The Insectile template gives and additional 4 arms, but specifies that they grant no additional attacks. A DM would likely find it cheesy if you were using them for anything, as their intention was probably more for aesthetics and to justify the climb speed than anything.

Savage Species is considered a VERY cheesy book, so be careful when trying to use it.

Adumbration
2009-02-23, 03:22 AM
You can also use Fuse Arms to get +20 to your Strength. It doesn't even specify it as an enhancement bonus, so it should stack.

SoD
2009-02-23, 06:43 AM
Or hold 11 shields and 1 spear and do nothing but charge every turn

Why eleven sheilds? The bonus from one sheild doesn't stack with another. If you had 100000000000 arms, and held a non-magical heavy sheild in each, your sheild bonus to AC would be +2. You'd be better to go horseback and weild 999999999999 lances and one tower sheild.

PinkysBrain
2009-02-23, 08:09 AM
There is also the Dolgrim in the ECS.

1 RHD (so you can swap it with a class level) and +2 LA.

Has DR5/byeshk and a racial ability to be able to use perform off hand attacks without attack bonus penalty if you are fighting with 2 weapons.

koeldflare
2009-02-23, 09:54 AM
Thanks guys. I was really leaning towards the insectile template, until I found out you can't use the extra arms for weapons. Now I'm sure I'll be going for the Non-Psionic Thri-Kreen.

Also how do people feel about the Thri-Kreen Racial Class (Complete Psionic, page 150 I believe)? It seems decent to me, and spreads the LA out nicely, but wondering your opinions also.

Eldariel
2009-02-23, 10:02 AM
Eh, it means you'd have to deal with the psionic Level Adjustment. Just go with the non-psionic variant; it has the same CL on ECL 4 and never has to deal with additional LA.

SydneyLosstarot
2009-02-23, 11:28 AM
There are also Chitine in the Underdark
+2 LA, 2HD, some nice stat boosts, small size, 30ft speed, 20 ft climb speed
also get multiattack for free
on the downside, they have light sensitivity and RP restrictions due to being servants to the drow

Jastermereel
2009-02-24, 02:28 PM
Thanks guys. I was really leaning towards the insectile template, until I found out you can't use the extra arms for weapons.

Can they not be used for weapons, or do they just not give extra attacks? Could they still be used to increase the strength's impact on damage? It would seem overly cheesy (even for Savage Species) to not be able to use them much at all.

NPCMook
2009-02-24, 02:48 PM
Can they not be used for weapons, or do they just not give extra attacks? Could they still be used to increase the strength's impact on damage? It would seem overly cheesy (even for Savage Species) to not be able to use them much at all.

They don't grant extra attacks, like most races with multiple arms, the additional arms do no grant extra Attacks

Jastermereel
2009-02-24, 07:23 PM
They don't grant extra attacks, like most races with multiple arms, the additional arms do no grant extra Attacks

I understand that. That's why I included it as the lesser of two options.

What I'm asking relates to the following: I remember reading in one of the books (though, I'm having a hell of time figuring out where) that multi-handed weapons increased the strength modifier. That is, while a one-handed weapon was dice+STRx1, and a two-handed weapon was dice+STRx1.5, a three handed weapon would be dice+STRx2 (and dice+STRx2.5 for a four-handed weapon).

If this is true, can these arms, which can not give additional attacks (as we both well know), give aid in the aforementioned way or are they pure cheese as far as combat circumstances are concerned?

Edit: The multi-handed damage ideas were from Savage Species, page 42 and states "Each hand used beyond the first adds 1/2 the wielder’s Strength bonus to the damage."

Starbuck_II
2009-02-24, 07:34 PM
Thanks guys. I was really leaning towards the insectile template, until I found out you can't use the extra arms for weapons. Now I'm sure I'll be going for the Non-Psionic Thri-Kreen.

Also how do people feel about the Thri-Kreen Racial Class (Complete Psionic, page 150 I believe)? It seems decent to me, and spreads the LA out nicely, but wondering your opinions also.

You get 1/day Displacement: always useful.
I rather like the Psionic version Thri-Kreen.