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View Full Version : [3.5, Mythos] “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”



Adam1949
2014-02-11, 06:33 PM
Related Threads (IMPORTANT TO READ!)

This is intended as supplementary material for "Mythos" classes, a special variety and subsystem created by Xefas. It's a "Racial Paragon" in the same vein as the previously-made "Human" (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=320038), "Kobold" (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=16645312), and "Reth Dekala" (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=16718230) varieties. In this, we take a look at the larger members of 3.5, Giants. As it has been pointed out to me before, I'd like to mention that I am not familiar with the Exalted system or the fluff behind it. So, my take on it is going to almost certainly be different than that of Xefas'. I like to think of it as "creative differences", but of course everyone has their own opinion. Thank you for understanding in advance.

Below are currently the three 'original' examples of the Mythos subsystem for which this race is built for.

The Teramach (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=286983)
The Kathodos (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=15947087)
The Olethrofex (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=16517470)



Due to requests, I will no longer post the 'iconic' tri-fold picture for Mythic Races. Instead, Here is a link (http://i.imgur.com/Mrd8nkt.jpg) to the picture.

"A giant's the worst! A giant has a brain. Hard to outwit a giant. A giant's just like us, only bigger. Much, MUCH bigger! SOOO big that we are just an expendable bug beneath its feet.” ~The Witch, Into the Woods

The Mythic Giant

The war between the Lawbringers and the Primordials was filled with heroes and villains on both sides, as neither combatant was truly good or evil. However, aligned with the Primordials was probably one of the most infamous of the warriors, known for his greatness in both combat and in sheer vastness. His name, translated into Celestial-Infernal, is the very root of the word 'Mountain', so large the Primordial was.


The Mountain was a grand thing, towering over any living being, and beating out practically every nonliving thing as well in scale. It is said that when he moved, the very earth shook not from his weight, but from a deep-seated fear of being ripped asunder. When he spoke, which was blessedly rare, the air cowered and fled, choking anything foolish enough to be with him. His laughter was thunder, his sadness the ocean, and his rage was a forge hot enough to melt stone.


But what the Mountain was most skilled at was not laughter, or crying, or even getting angry. No, he was prodigy in warfare; brutal, savage, gleeful bloodshed, the likes of which only the Monster could surpass. Unlike the original Teramach, though, the Mountain did not feel rage and anger in his slaughter; rather, he felt a different emotion, one of indifference and boredom; for, with even the Monster being like an ant compared to his size, what joy cold he find in crushing those who opposed him beneath his foot?


The war between the ancients continued to rage on, but the Mountain had found himself growing tired of it all. Which was not to say he had lost his bloodlust—indeed, it was in the throes of combat, facing life-or-death situations, that the Mountain actually felt truly alive—but rather, that in those moments without war, he simply felt tired, lethargic, and inattentive. It was in one of these dark moods that the Primordial fell into a slumber, deeper and more potent than any had fallen into before. It was during this sleep that the Mountain began to change, slowly, over a hundred-thousand eons; his flesh grew craggy and rough, his hair became woody and green, his nails crystallized, and so forth, until the Mountain now truly was one with the earth. From his gaping mouth spilled forth more grand stones, and out from those stones hatched a smaller, weaker, more short-sighted race; the first of the Giants.


It is said, to this day, that the progenitor of the Giant race still lives today; not dead, but merely slumbering, in his self-made tomb of earth and stone. And it is also said that his descendants, foolish and puny runts that they are, still hold drops of his essence within their blood, each one simply waiting. Biding their time, until the Mountain once more opens his eyes.


New Feat: The Sleeping Mountain Legacy
Prerequisite: One Mythos; Humanoid, Giant, or Monstrous Humanoid type; Must have at least one of the following traits be a permanent aspect of you: Large or larger size, have the Powerful Build racial ability, or have giant blood within you.
Benefit: Choose one Mythos-granting class that you have levels in. You may treat the following Mythos as if they belonged to that class. Your maximum hit points increase by 1 for every [Epic] feat, and every feat that references a "Grapple" or the act of "Grappling" in its benefits (excluding this one), that you possess. Note that unless you are actually of an Epic level (21 or higher), there will be almost no way that you can gain more [Epic] feats except from the following Mythos.

If you somehow lose this feat, or no longer qualify for it, you cease to gain the benefits of the granted Mythos until you regain this feat or qualify for it once more.


Exceptional Mythos

Betwixt Two Crushing Fingers
Prerequisite: —
The Mountain took no pleasure in obliterating his foes by holding them between the tips of his fingers, so then why did he do it so constantly? Simple: because he could, and if he could, why would he not do so? To not break them so thoroughly would be to deny a part of himself.

You gain the Improved Unarmed Strike and Improved Grapple feats (both PH) as bonus feats.
Whenever you have a foe that is smaller than you in a grapple (including same-sized foes who lack Powerful Build, if you have that racial ability, but not those that have been swallowed, see the Legendary Mythos), you may squeeze them, with the same attitude towards your victim as an ape to a fruit, or a man to a flea. You automatically deal damage equal to your unarmed attack times 1.5, as though you were making a two-handed attack (roll for damage, but do not roll to attack; this negates the ability to use effects like Power Attack). If you kill your opponent this way, you may make a messy spectacle of them, ruining their body badly enough that spells that require a relatively complete body such as Raise Dead no longer work on the unfortunate victim.

Advanced
Like Wings Off a Fly: You may, as a standard action against foes that you have grappled, make an opposed grapple check against them. On a success, you concentrate your damage to a single limb of your choosing (arms, legs, wings, tentacles, and so forth are viable targets; the head is not).
The victim only takes half-damage from the attack; however, make a note as to how much damage is dealt to the specific limb. Once you have dealt 30% of your victim's HP in damage concentrated to a limb, the limb is torn away from them, or more accurately is popped right off of them, like a ragdoll toy. This deals an additional 10% of their total HP to them, and causes them to take 1 point of damage each turn from bleeding until they either are affected by magical healing, or have a DC 25 Heal check administered upon them.
In addition, obviously, they cannot use that limb. While missing one arm, actions that would benefit from two arms (such as climbing, balancing, or swimming) take a -8 penalty. Completing somatic components for spells is impossible. A missing leg prevents the use of that creature's land speed, although they may crawl 10 feet as a full-round action (or 5 feet, if missing both legs). A missing wing prevents the use of a natural flight speed.

Earth-Shattering Footprints
Prerequisite: —
The scars of the Mountain can still be seen in the world today; valleys, canyons, and sinkholes, all are the echoes of the ancient one's great footfalls, pocketmarks that show precisely where he had moved.

You gain the Legendary Leaper feat (CAd) as a bonus feat without needing to meet its prerequisites.
You may, as a standard action, crush the ground beneath you with one of your limbs and create a shockwave that radiates out from your position and continues for a number of feet equal to 5 feet times your class level. Make a single unarmed attack roll. Every creature in the affected area compares its Balance check result to your attack roll result. Those who fail this opposed check are knocked down. In addition, the spot upon which you stand, and each space surrounding that one, becomes difficult terrain. You may only use this ability every 1d4 rounds.
As a bonus, structures and unattended objects that are at least partially within the shockwave take damage equal to Xd6 + your Strength bonus, where X is your class level.
Finally, whenever you would take your one allotted 5-foot step in a turn, you may choose to take a 10-foot step instead, ignoring difficult terrain as you do.

Grinding Bones to Make My Bread
Prerequisite: —
Hunger, although not something that the Mountain embodied, was still extremely common for him. Much like the ancient Primordial, you can find satisfaction in the consumption of the taste most common to people in your position: the dead, so easily found or made wherever you go.

As a full-round action, you may grab onto a dead or dying creature of Small size or larger (up to one size category smaller than you, or one equal to your size category if you have Powerful Build) and dash them across the ground. This counts as a Coup de Grace attack. If the target dies, you may then take a bite of their life-essence as it weakly floats away from their mangled corpse, recovering a number of hitpoints equal to your class level plus the slain target's Hit Dice. Afterwards, if you so choose, you may then literally eat the slain being, taking another full-round action doing so. If you do this, every foe that can see you must make a Will save or be sickened for 2d4 rounds; on a success, the now-enraged enemy gains a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls against you for 1d6 turns, or until you consume another creature, at which point they lose whatever bonus they had against you and must make another Will save.

Thunder-Silencing Warcry
Prerequisite: —
With a single shout, you can shake the very sky to its core. Imagine what your voice can do to those who draw your ire, then.

As a standard action, you may let loose a terrifying scream or shout that reverberates throughout the air, shaking all around you to their very core. Every being around you that is of a lower ECL than you, as well as every unattended object, must make a Reflex save; failure indicates that they were unsuccessful in covering their ears, as they suffer 2d4 sonic damage per class level. Afterwards, all targets (even those that made the earlier save) must make a Will save; failure indicates that the victim becomes shaken for 1d6+1 rounds (this is a Fear effect). If a being fails both saves, they become deafened for the same amount of time as they are shaken, plus one round afterwards. The maximum range of this ability is 10 feet per class level centered around you, although you may choose to affect a smaller area whenever you shout (you are immune to the effects of this Mythos; your allies, however, are not). You may only utilize this Mythos every 1d4 rounds.


Fantastic Mythos

Hide of Stone, Mind of Iron
Prerequisite: At least 1 Mythos gained by The Sleeping Mountain Legacy
Like your ancestor, your flesh is an impassable wall, a shield before which mere blades and arrows cannot penetrate. More than that, however, your mind has begun to solidify, becoming difficult to persuade or bend.

You gain the Damage Reduction (CW) and Fast Healing (Drac) feats as bonus feats without needing to meet their prerequisites. In addition, you gain a natural armor bonus to your AC equal to the number of Mythos you've gained from The Sleeping Mountain Legacy, plus one.
Finally, if you are affected by an enchantment spell or effect and fail your saving throw, you can attempt it again 1 round later at the same DC, with a +3 bonus to the roll. You get only this one extra chance to succeed on the saving throw, although this stacks with abilities such as a rogue's Slippery Mind extraordinary ability.

Roiling Energized Maelstrom Ancestry
Prerequisite: At least 1 Mythos gained by The Sleeping Mountain Legacy
It isn't by accident that so many giants of the modern era take on elemental abilities. The Mountain had magma for blood, lightning for hair, storm-clouds for breath, and earth for skin. You, much like he, have become partially bound to the elements of the world.

Your type becomes Giant, if it wasn't already. You also gain the Powerful Build racial trait, if you didn't have it already. In addition, your base speed increases by 10 feet, as your long legs and wide gait grant you a more mobile build.

You gain a bonus to Knowledge (The Planes) equal to your class level, and it is always a class skill for you. In addition, gain a +2 bonus to a single physical attribute (Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution), and a +2 bonus to a single mental attribute (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma), each of your own choosing.

You gain access to a single Basic manifestation of this Mythos; unlike most, you may not purchase a different Basic manifestation of it later. However, if you were already a giant similar to one of the elemental options, you are not required to choose the same; thus, a Cloud Giant could take Fireblood Heir, for example.

Basic
Cloudblood Heir: You gain the Air subtype, but do not gain a flight speed from it. A number of times per day equal to your highest ability modifier, you may cast Levitate upon yourself as a spell-like ability as though a sorcerer of your class level had cast in upon you, with the minimum weight being your weight, plus 100 pounds.
Fireblood Heir: You gain the Fire subtype. A number of times per day equal to your highest ability modifier, you may cast Body Blaze (SS) as a spell-like ability as though a sorcerer of your class level had cast it.
Frostblood Heir: You gain the Cold subtype. A number of times per day equal to your highest ability modifier, you may cast Corona of Cold (SpC) as a spell-like ability as though a sorcerer of your class level had cast it.
Stoneblood Heir: You gain the Earth subtype. You also gain a burrow speed equal to half your base speed. This burrowing leaves behind no tunnel or hole unless you choose to leave one, nor does it create any ripple or other signs of your presence.
Stormblood Heir: You gain immunity to electricity. Whenever you would have taken damage from an electrical effect, you can do one of the following; absorb the effect and heal an amount equal to half of the damage that you have taken had you not been immune to it, or discharge the effect at any target within 60 feet of you, dealing half as much damage as you would have taken had you not been immune to it.
Trueblood Heir: Your natural size increases by one category. This does not increase your Constitution or Natural Armor as it normally would, but your Strength increases and your Dexterity decreases as normal. In addition, you gain the Legendary Wrestler feat (EL) as a bonus feat without needing to meet its prerequisites.


Legendary Mythos

Wall-Dwarfing Hungering Colossus
Prerequisite: The Roiling Energized Maelstrom Ancestry Mythos
Your body, although still not nearly as grandiose and magnificent as the Mountain, does nonetheless make even your brethren appear small, by a wide margin. In the same respect, your stomach grows large and cavernous, able to become filled with your foes even as they still thrash within.


Your natural size increases by one category. This does not increase your Constitution or Natural Armor as it normally would, but your Strength increases and your Dexterity decreases as normal. In addition, you gain the Epic Toughness and Wield Oversized Weapon feats (both CW) without needing to meet their prerequisites.


Additionally, you gain the ability to swallow foes whole. If you begin your turn with an opponent held in a grapple, you can attempt a new grapple check (as though attempting to pin the opponent). If you succeed, your opponent takes unarmed damage and is swallowed.

A swallowed creature is considered grappled, while you are not. A swallowed creature can cut its way out by using a light slashing or piercing weapon to deal 20 points of damage to the inner walls of your stomach (AC equal to your class level + your Natural Armor bonus), or it can just try to escape the grapple. If the swallowed creature chooses the latter course, success puts it back in your mouth (at which point, you may make another grapple attempt to re-swallow it). Any damage a swallowed creature deals is deducted from your hit points. Note that if you have any permanent DR/-, such as from levels of Barbarian or the Hide of Stone, Mind of Iron Mythos, this applies to the damage that would be dealt to you from a victim who attempts to cut its way out of you. Likewise, if you have any sort of Fast Healing, it is 'applied' to this damage first, forcing the poor victim to essentially deal more than 20 damage to escape.

If a creature cuts itself free, muscular action closes the hole, so that if you swallow someone again, that creature must cut itself free again.

Swallowed creatures take damage in each round they remain swallowed equal to 1d4 acid damage + 1d4 crushing damage per class level, as well as your unarmed damage.

You may have a certain number of beings in your stomach based on your size; you may hold 2 creatures that are two size categories smaller than you, 8 of three, 32 of four, 128 of five, or 512 of six or more size categories smaller than you within your stomach.

Primal Fury
2014-02-11, 11:48 PM
Oooooo. I like this. This guy really FEELS like something that could be older than the world.

One thing though. Betwixt Two Crushing Fingers doesn't feel like it does a whole lot. I know that not having to roll for grapples in order to deal damage is really useful, but it feels like it should do more. Maybe more damage? Maybe it should cripple them too on a failed save? Not sure.

Adam1949
2014-02-16, 04:05 PM
Improved Betwixt Two Crushing Fingers to more attractive for selection.

BONUS: Also modified Grinding Bones to Make My Bread in order to instead scale with how tough the foe is + your level, rather than just twice your level. This way, you can't just carry a sack of Halfling Commoners everywhere.