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CrypticOcean
2010-05-04, 12:16 AM
Greetings to all.

Whilst paging through the Fiendish Codex II, I rediscovered the Hellbred, a race that has always interested me, but I have never had the chance to play. I am still somewhat confused on whether the Hellbred itself is meant to be a standalone race (it certainly is described as such.), or a template applied to a creature not unlike the Dragonborn. While the language description notifies it remembers any languages known in its past life, in addition to Infernal, it seems that the race itself was meant to have any past identity purged from its form, making the Hellbred a race in itself.

Regardless of my confusion, I always liked the concept of a race having multiple facets to chose from. While the Spirit Aspect is substantially better than the Body Aspect, aside from the paltry amount of Devil-Touched feats (do not get me wrong, I do actually like them, but compared to their close cousins, the Abyssal Heritor feats, they just feel...sparse.) the Hellbred race does not have the option to embrace its Infernal heritage. Yes, they can use unholy weapons and speak a diabolic language, but barring the Warlock class, it is somewhat difficult to really make a Hellbred feel like a devil.

Now, I understand that Hellbred are souls seeking redemption, and that most would pretty much avoid being even more closely associated with their tormentors, but as far as I know, they really do not get a choice with what happens to them during the Scourging. Perhaps as a further test (or punishment) from those that give it this last chance at redemption, I devised a third Infernal Aspect that could be bestowed upon them. I give you, the Monstrous Aspect.

Hellbred Infernal Aspect-Monstrous

•+2 Con, -2 Dex, -2 Wis-The Process of the Scourging bestows fortitude and resilience unto those who endure its rigors, but their new forms are clumsy and hard to control, and it often scars the mind.
•He who takes on the Monstrous aspect gains two claw attacks as primary natural weapons, as well as a large pair of leathery wings, and a poisonous bite (Secondary). He also gains a natural armour bonus of +1.
•Glide (Ex)-Although the Hellbred’s wings are easily strong enough to carry him aloft, he is inexperienced with their use, and has not yet mastered the way to use these new extensions to his body. He may use them to glide, however, moving forward twenty feet for ever five feet descended. His glide speed is 40 ft with average maneuverability. They also grant him a +10 bonus to Jump checks.
•Claws-1d4+str Damage
•Bite 1d6+1/2 Str Damage
•Flight(Ex)-When a Hellbred reaches 5 HD, he becomes capable of flight (40 ft, Average Maneuverability) A Hellbred cannot fly when carrying a medium or heavy load, or while fatigued or exhausted. A Hellbred can safely fly for a number of consecutive rounds equal to his Constitution modifier (minimum 1 round.) They can exert themselves to fly up to twice as long, but are fatigued at the end of the flight. Hellbred are likewise fatigued if they spend more than 10 minutes worth of flight in total in a day.
•When Hellbred Reach 10 HD, he is capable of full flight and it is no more exerting than walking or running.
•Blah blah blah dive attack, etc, etc.
•At 5 HD, a Hellbred’s claws are considered magick for the purposes of overcoming damage reduction
•At 7 HD, a Hellbred’s claws gain an increase in damage as if they had increased in size (1d6+str)
•At 11 HD, a Hellbred’s claws become wrapped in hellfire, dealing an extra 1d6 points of fire damage.
•At 7 HD, a Hellbred’s fangs begin to drip with a virulent poison. Whenever he makes a successful bite attack, he can deliver a poisonous bite. The DC is equal to 10+½ the Hellbred’s HD+Con Modifier. His fangs only produce enough venom to create one dose of this poison a day. (Damage 1 Con/1d2 Con)
•At 12 HD, the Hellbred’s poison becomes even more potent, increasing the DC by 2, and allowing him to produce extra doses equal to his Constitution modifier. His poison’s damage also increases (1d4 Con/1d4 Con)
•At 15 HD, the Hellbred can produce his poison indefinitely, and the damage increases one last time (1d6 Con/1d6 Con)
•At 5 HD a Hellbred gains Fire Resistance 5, this increases to Fire Resistance 10 at 10 HD.

Now, yes, these are quite the array of abilities, and I myself am uncertain as to how balanced they really are. I feel that poison is already vastly underpowered in D&D, and the poison is not especially dangerous until 15th level, where reliable counters to poison are easily available. I tried my best to make it flavourful, but have a useful array of abilities due to the two ability score penalties. This is my first real try at homebrewing anything, so I do apologize if my first attempt is...less than impressive.

This particular aspect is based off of the Pit Fiend's array of abilities, although I am sure that I could attempt to come up with Monstrous Aspects that personify the other Baazetu. If the original concept itself is not in need of major revamping, of course.

CrypticOcean
2010-05-05, 11:34 AM
My apologies for the bump, but I would really appreciate some critique on this.

radmelon
2010-05-07, 08:46 PM
While I can't really say how balanced it is, I am glad the Hellbred's getting some love.

EdroGrimshell
2010-05-07, 09:14 PM
The poison bite may be a bit much but otherwise is a great idea.

I'd like to see more support for this race as well (racial paragon, racial feats, racial sub levels, etc.)