What race should this guy be? (3.5)

[D4rtagnan]

Alright, so I am bring in a new character to a D&D game I am in. Flavor wise, he is the last decedent of this long forgotten empire, that was wiped out when one of the gods fell to the mortal plane. He on a quest to rediscover the empire, searching for artifacts from that time. Mechanically he is a LG level 9 crusader/ level 1 cleric and level four Red Knight. His race was a half dragon human (I was allowed a level 4 buy off).

Originally I was going to have his race be a surprise. He is normally in heavy armor. Sadly the information got leaked...so I am thinking about doing a last minute change up to his race/template.

Can you think up any good races/templates around LA +4 that would fit this character, both mechanically and flavor wise?

[HunterOfJello]

Shade is a +4 LA race from Races of Faerun that fits your description perfectly. Their flavor text is almost identical to what you've described. I wouldn't give the character access to that race though.

A +4 LA is a bit too much to give anyone. Half-Dragons do have a +4 LA, but they really don't deserve a full +4. They're more of a +2 LA template.

I would instead give a modified version of the Karsite race from Tome of Magic (Binder section) to the character. They're +2 LA, look like humans, and are well worth their price. Their racial benefits are similar to what drow get, but karsite's are actually better. The main problem with Karsites is that they can't use magic whatsoever, so I would remove that restriction and leave it at that. (Remember, karsites have all the normal traits a human has, as well as all the stuff mentioned in their entry.)

[D4rtagnan]

Well if you take into account that we are level 15 and we are now having to go face a lich lord with levels in tainted scholar, I'd say OP, and breaking the game doesnt really matter that much to this GM.

[dwlc2000]

Half dragons are good. Why does it matter if the other pcs know what you are. It would only stay secret until the first time you used a breath weapon attack. Just stick with it. They would have figured it out anyway.

[Seharvepernfan]

Half-celestial would fit his class selection, but it's hard to imagine an empire run by celestial-blooded folks. You could go half-fiend, but I'm guessing that doesn't fit.

Shade would be good, imo.

Also, if you have the MM3, check out spellwarped.

[jywu98]

Half dragons are good. Why does it matter if the other pcs know what you are. It would only stay secret until the first time you used a breath weapon attack. Just stick with it. They would have figured it out anyway.

Except they aren't worth their LA.

[JellyPooga]

Not sure about the 'mechanical' implications, as I'm not familiar with the details of the Crusader, but a Half-Ogre (+2 LA) might be a viable base race to template with something. Going with the 'last descendant' thing, this ancient race could well have been giants of some description and this guy is like the watered-down version. You've got another 2 points worth of Level Adjustment to play with, so template away to your heart content to make it fit better thematically or mechanically.

[Mr Adventurer]

Hellbred! He didn't escape the destruction of his civilisation - he just escaped Hell afterwards!