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Wolfepuppy
2014-05-04, 03:05 AM
Does anyone feel the racial traits for the changeling is a bit non-specific, or particularly uninformative. My gripe is about the minor change shape ability. In the racial traits it says it works like disguise but instead of using magic the changelings body changes. Now this seems somewhat straight forward but this has other consequences. What if the changeling male decides to be a changeling female. By the disguise skill it says that he should take a -2 penalty for being a different gender. Should his voice change or anything else. By the disguise spell or skill probably not. However in the description of the changelings as a race it says they are able to become male or female at will, including sexual organs as they can reproduce with either sex as a partner. This is where it seems that the minor shape change exceeds the description of the trait. When a changeling assumes another form it is not just disguised as something else, it actually is something else. Therefore I don't think the changeling would suffer the -2 penalty for changing gender. I also think that, for the description given, the minor change shape ability seems a bit less helpful than it was intended to be. The only difference between what is described in the racial description in the races of eberron for changelings and the shape change ability of doppelgangers is the size restriction, as it says nothing about changelings changing size. Do not think that minor change shape should only give a +10 to disguise, I think it should be automatic like the change shape of the doppelganger. The change shape ability does give a +10 to disguise but I believe this would only apply when taking on the identity of a specific person, right?
Thoughts?

ShadowFighter15
2014-05-04, 04:23 AM
Firstly - might I suggest paragraph breaks next time? Makes it a lot easier to read.

The ability's description says that it works like Disguise Self, but that it's a physical alteration to their bodies rather than a glamor over their whole body (including equipment).

As for size change; Disguise Self mentions being able to make yourself a foot taller or shorter and I remember reading somewhere that a changeling disguising himself as a dwarf would just pass themselves off as a tall dwarf rather than a more average-sized one. Can't remember the height range for the smaller races, but I know that a changeling can't actually change their size category.

No mention either way for the gender disguise penalty, but considering the freedom Disguise Self implies I'd say it would come with a full voice change. I'd be tempted to leave the penalty as-is, though, because a Disguise check is more than just purely physical changes. It's also mannerisms, word choice, body language. And, above all, consistency of the disguise. All of that comes down to pure skill no matter how much shapechanging power someone has.

Also; remember that a disguise check's result only really comes up when someone tries to see through it, not the moment anyone looks at you. And since any changeling character who plans to use a lot of disguises will probably have that skill maxed out...