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Spikes01k
2007-03-18, 02:52 PM
Hill Orcs

Hill Orcs are a product of a tribe of Goliaths that lived closer to the bottom of mountains than most. They opened their ranks and adpoted half orcs and some humans into their tribe. Over the years with the mixing of the bloods and traditions they became what is now known as Hill Orcs. Currently there are only a dozen tribes, but they are very big existing near mountain bases. There are rumors of some dwarven blood being mixed in with them due to the trading relations between them but that has never been confirmed.

Description and Over View

Physical Description
Male hill orcs look a great deal like half orcs in shape but with an equivalent stocky build of a dwarf, when compared to humans and dwarfs. The head is often very goliath like but with any number of half orcish traits. They have little hair, mostly on the head, but occasionally a beard and thin hair on the back. The hair can be brown, grey, or black. The skin tends to mimic the texture and color of goliaths.
Females can be very hard to judge from goliath females. Their body tends to be a good-deal less stocky than the males but still happen to function in the same way. Female's hair is diffinatly half orcish in nature. Their head is very goliath like; orcish trates are much less common than males. A trained eye can note that all female ears are distinctly half orchis in nature. (I need to come back and finish this later.

Culture and Religion
Their culture tends to mimic goliath's culture but with them entities being hill orcs instead, and some other variants of belief to better fit their geography.


Over View
Hill orcs are stocky creatures who take great joy in physical activity and stature. They are strong fighters and know how to work their strengths but some tend to be a little more focused battle than golitaths.
A great deal of half ors who joined their tribe were abandoned by their orc family and held a hatred toward their orcish trates and culter, thus why they sot to join a different one, and thus they abandoned their goblinoid ancestry. They don't hate themselves and they do have a great deal of their orcish traits; so their feelings about their ancestry is mixed, they adopted the name hill orcs in an attempt to try and start giving a good name to orcs and to start leading them by example.
Like goliaths they are very competitive and love proving them selves physically superior to each other in many tasks. However these competitions are usually just for boasting rights at most. Even though most hill orcs will not look for a fight, when one is confronted they do enjoy the battle. The tribes are very closely knitted and work effectively together, however they do put a great deal of value on a small section of personal space and land. Each hill orc or hill orc clutch has in their triable land a small space, which is the bar minimum space they need to live, that they hold in high regard and is seen as very personal space. The one sure way of aggrivating them is by disrespecting their personal space. However that space specificly is not the issue but rather the general actual amount of space. If a member of the tribe needs space for a growing family the entire tribe is usually willing to move their personal space to accommodate. In a few sparse occasions an alpha minded hill orc will be encroached apon and will have too large a family that it just has a great connection to each other that he will refuse to move. When this happens the rest will accommodate him or her as well, but this is but the sign of the end to his stay in that tribe. After two or three occasions the leader or another person with authority to exile a member, will come up to them and question them on the situation. In most of these occasions this will likely lead to a form of exile. The younger individuals will be forced to leave as an exile for a number of years. The older ones, who maybe have become hardened with age, will be given a good land to start up their own tribe. actual exile is not as common with hill orcs as with goliaths but these temporary exiles are very common in practice. Hill orcs are also nomadic like goliaths, and share alot of the same psychology as goliaths. Hill orcs are still nomadic like goliaths but they have a stronger focus on metal working and farming. Having more land to work with, they tend to set up many hidden farms and smithing caves at their many areas of settlement. However they still need to trade with dwares. In most of the other ways their life is a reflection of their goliath ancestry.

Relations
Hill orcs are more in touch with the world than goliaths. They too tend to act friendly and open to anyone they meet out in the world with the exception of normal orcs, goblinoids, drow, and giants. Every Hill Orc is usually willing to give anyone a chance but they are wirry of the drow, goblinoids, and giant races. If any of these races were to wonder into their tribe with out notice, they would promptly tell them or motion them to leave under threat of force and be willing to host discretions outside tribal lands if they leave peacefully. If any of the non goblinoid races were to wonder into tribal land they would be greeted warmly by the owner of that specific personal space and told to respect the land. Hill orcs hold half orcs, goliaths, and dwarves in high regard. A hill orc who has become close to a member of one of these races tend to treat them as a member of their own tribe.

Hill Orc Lands
Hill orcs usually will have a set number of mountains in a mountain range from which they will move from base to base to different settlements. Unless they are rather neutral or evil in nature they will be sure to not take another hill orc trib's settlement. Each tribe thus far usually has about 6-8 settlements between 4-6 moutains to their own at any given time.

Alignment:
Hill orcs tend to be good or neutral with good intentions toward their own tribe, although they can be any. Evil hill orcs are usually exiled if they are not sneaky enough to hide their nature.

Hill Orcs Characteristics
*+2 Str, -2 Dex, -2 Int, -2 Wis
*Movement 30ft
*Medium Size
*Humanoid
*Dark Vision 60ft
* Optimal Build: The benefits of this racial trait stack with the effects of powers, abilities, and spells that change the subject’s size category, but not with the feat monkey grip and other feats that allow using larger weapons.The physical stature of hill orc lets them function in many ways as if they were one size category larger; but like powerful build they are only treated as one size large when dealing with large weapons, when they are becoming immune to special abilities, and eventually with opposed rolls where size is a matter.
At 1 hit die a hill orc can use weapons designed for a creature one size larger without penalty. However, his space and reach remain those of a creature of his actual size. A hill orc is also considered to be one size larger when determining whether a creature’s special attacks based on size (such as improved grab or swallow whole) can affect him.
After obtaining 3 hit die whenever a hill orc is subject to a size modifier or special size modifier for an opposed check (such as during grapple checks, bull rush attempts, and trip attempts), the hill orc is treated as one size larger if doing so is advantageous to him. Optimal build should be treated as powerful build from here on and be treated as monkey grip when meeting the prerequisites for feats and prestige classes.
At 21 hit die a hill orc does not need to meet the requirements for strength for the "Weild Oversized Weapon" epic feat; although the ability to use large weapons does not stack with optimaled build they do gain the other bonuses.
*+2 racial bonus to Spot and Listen; hill orcs may not be the wises of beings but they are no less observant than anyone else.
*Weapon Proficiencies: Axes, throwing and light, Battleaxe, and Greataxe
*Automatic Language: Common, and Gol-Kaa. Bonus Languages: Any (other than secret languages, such as Druidic). See the Speak Language skill.
*Favored Class: Barbarian

Edit:
Version 1
Powerful build, no Optimal Build

Optimal Build v2:
The physical stature of an hill orc lets him function in many ways as if he were one size category larger as they gain experience.
At 1 hit die a hill orc can use a large sized weapons with a -1 to hit, but they still have to use a one handed weapon two handed and treat a light weapon as a one handed weapon. This can only be applied to the weapon in their primary hand or a large one handed weapon held two handed. This does not allow them to use a normal two handed weapon one handed. However, his space & reach remain those of a creature of his actual size. A hill orc is also considered to be one size larger when determining whether a creature’s special attacks based on size (such as improved grab or swallow whole) can affect him. The benefits of this racial trait stack with the effects of powers, abilities, & spells that change the subject’s size category. This ability works with monkey grip in very specific ways, If you have the monkey grip feat this ability allows you to wield large size weapons in your primary hand as if you were a large creature with only a -1 to hit.
At 3 hit die whenever an hill orc is subject to a size modifier or special size modifier for an opposed check (such as during grapple checks, bull rush attempts, & trip attempts), the hill orc is treated as one size larger if doing so is advantageous to him.
At 5 hit die of progression a hill orc can use weapons designed for a creature one size larger without penalty, but only if they wield a large one handed weapon two handed, and treat a light weapon as a one handed. If they have the monkey grip feat optimal build now changes to powerful build and is treated as such.

Optimal Build Version 3
A hill orc can wield weapons of a large size with no penalty, however they are still restricted to wielding a large one handed weapon two handed, and a light weapon as if it were a one handed weapon, however this is only with a weapon being used by their primary hand. This does not allow them to use a normal two handed weapon one handed. However, his space & reach remain those of a creature of his actual size. A hill orc is also considered to be one size larger when determining whether a creature’s special attacks based on size (such as improved grab or swallow whole) can affect him. The benefits of this racial trait stack with the effects of powers, abilities, & spells that change the subject’s size category. Whenever an hill orc is subject to a size modifier or special size modifier for an opposed check (such as during grapple checks, bull rush attempts, & trip attempts), the hill orc is treated as one size larger if doing so is advantageous to him. If they have the monkey grip feat optimal build now changes to powerful build and is treated as such.

Optimal Build Version 4
At 1 hit die a hill orc can use a large sized weapons with a -1 to hit, but they still have to use a one handed weapon two handed and treat a light weapon as a one handed weapon. This can only be applied to the weapon in their primary hand or a large one handed weapon held two handed. This does not allow them to use a normal two handed weapon one handed. However, his space & reach remain those of a creature of his actual size. A hill orc is also considered to be one size larger when determining whether a creature’s special attacks based on size (such as improved grab or swallow whole) can affect him. The benefits of this racial trait stack with the effects of powers, abilities, & spells that change the subject’s size category. This ability works with monkey grip in very specific ways, If you have the monkey grip feat this ability allows you to wield large size weapons in your primary hand as if you were a large creature with only a -1 to hit.
At 3 hit die whenever an hill orc is subject to a size modifier or special size modifier for an opposed check (such as during grapple checks, bull rush attempts, & trip attempts), the hill orc is treated as one size larger if doing so is advantageous to him. A hill orc can also use weapons designed for a creature one size larger without penalty, but only if they wield a large one handed weapon two handed, and treat a light weapon as a one handed. If they have the monkey grip feat optimal build now changes to powerful build and is treated as such.

Version 5 <as above>

Necromas
2007-03-18, 03:12 PM
You should increase the stats and make it LA +1, -2 int and wis balances out the +2 strength, but -2 dex definitely does not balance out powerful build, which gives +4 to trip, disarm, bull rush, grapple etc..., and a significant damage boost with all weapons.

Fuum Bango
2007-03-18, 03:18 PM
Nice. But what if you got rid of the -2 Wisdom. They need it for Spot and Listen I think and they already have -2 Intelligence and Dexterity.

Matthew
2007-03-18, 06:58 PM
Reminds me of Orogs.

Spikes01k
2007-03-18, 07:23 PM
You should increase the stats and make it LA +1, -2 int and wis balances out the +2 strength, but -2 dex definitely does not balance out powerful build, which gives +4 to trip, disarm, bull rush, grapple etc..., and a significant damage boost with all weapons.

*Snip*

Sorry keep fogetting I am asking for advice.

Ok if people agree with you I have an idea.

I would just like to point out that I did use up the bonus feat slot as well.

Spikes01k
2007-03-18, 07:27 PM
Nice. But what if you got rid of the -2 Wisdom. They need it for Spot and Listen I think and they already have -2 Intelligence and Dexterity.

I gave them the natural bonus to spot and lisen to conpinsate that, otherwise I don't see why they shouldn't get a -2 to wis. If you have a problem with the masive amounts of minuses to stats I am going some what by the formula in the DMG. The -2 Dex mostly compinsates for the fact that Powerful Build is just all that powerful. I also got rid of the normal natural bonus feat to help compinsate for powerful build as well.

Rama_Lei
2007-03-18, 10:08 PM
W/O the wisdom penalty, it seems balanced.

Spikes01k
2007-03-18, 10:24 PM
W/O the wisdom penalty, it seems balanced.

Well if you want to do that, then thats fine. I am getting a lot of contradictory statements, some people saying its still too powerful and the other saying it is over balanced.

Powerful Build is rather powerful, so I thought I'd fall on the safer side of the balance.

Spikes01k
2007-03-29, 04:25 PM
Alright, I have my newest version, and probably my near final version. What you think?

Matthew
2007-04-02, 08:02 PM
Why don't you just give these Powerful Build as a Racial Bonus Feat?

Spikes01k
2007-04-03, 08:52 PM
Why don't you just give these Powerful Build as a Racial Bonus Feat?

Balance. If that is what you want to do go-a-head.

P.S. sorry for it being so late in posting, here is the latest version.