BisectedBrioche
2007-11-09, 07:12 PM
This started off as sort of a melee version of my Linguamancer (see my signature) which was based around scavenging materials from the enviroment and then building weapons (which would deteriate more quickly than "real" weapons). This was too complicated, so instead I reduced the class to the scavenging compenent and had the items beign scavenged come "ready built". To justify why they were lying around I decided to have them in a state which only allowed certain people (i.e. of a specific race) to access them.
Race: The Bellaters
History
The Bellaters started off as a race of warriors who were none-the-less known for their highly academic society. This situation came about due to the event which lead to the races very creation.
Approximatly 1000 years ago from the present day, two gods created their own races. The gods (both close friends) were named Animum and Viscus, and they named their creations, the Viscusians and the Animites respectivly, in honor of one another. Both races were intelligent and strong however their cultures took different paths. As Viscus was a god of war and battles, the Animites were a race of warriors, while as Animum was a god of knowledge the Viscusians were a race of scholars.
As a gift to their races the two gods made the lands they called their home (Bellatria) rich in the ore of a metal which came to be known as insolitium.
At first glance insolitium is identical to iron (apart from a greenish tint), although it is slightly easier to refine and so it was simply known as Bellatrian Iron and no speacial attention was paid to it. 500 years later interbreeding between the Viscusians and the Animites meant that they were essentually the same race (although Animum and Viscus hadn't made them too dissimilar in the first place, and most of the other races weren't even aware this was the case, assuming the differences were merely cultural) and their culture had merged into one which valued both martial and academic prowess. This new race was known as the Bellaters. This event is known in Bellatrian society as "The Gain".
Approximatly 400 years ago the true power of insolitium was discovered. A group of adventurers (who's names have long since been forgotten) visited the lands. One of the group's members, a fighter, had his sword damaged and so it was repaired by a Bellatrian smith, who naturally used the insolitium which was abundant in his homeland. The adventurers then (on buisness unknown) entered the etheral plane. During their adventure, the fighter fell and the party was forced to leave his equipment (including the sword) behind and carry back his semi-concious body. When they returned to the material plane a Bellatrian theif decided to take advantage of their weakened state and tried to rob them. The party's cleric gave the Fighter a potion in order to heal him and told him to run for help, as he would be no use unarmed. Unfortunatly the theif ran strait towards the vunerable fighter. Suddenly, the fighter's sword appeared back in his hands and the theif was quickly cut down. The true power of Bellatrian Iron had been uncovered.
The Bellaters were quick to study this property and found that if an object made (at least partly) of insolitium was placed on the etheral plane then the true owner would be able to call it at will to the material plane. This lead to a series of technological and mystical leaps for the Bellaters. Unfortunatly the warrior side of the society overcame them as the study of technology was influenced by its martial implementation. Soon they ruthlessly carved a great empire, enslaving or destroying nation after nation. Even the lowest ranking foot soldiers could call powerful armour, weapons and armies of metal golems to their side and no-one could stand up to their might.
Furious at both the misuse of their gift and their maltreatment of other races Animum and Viscus cursed their creations. Animum stripped them of their knowledge of technology and mechanics leaving them worse off than a kobold striving to place stakes at the base of his pits, while Viscus cursed their breath forcing them to lose their breath faster than an elderly elven mage, walking to his own bookshelf. This is known in Bellatrian society as "The Loss".
Over time, as they watched Bellaters reduced to scrambling around their own decaying cities, trying desperatly to find scraps of stored food, the two gods felt remoursful for having acted so rashly. And so they gave their people a chance to redeem themselves. So they allowed them to choose: they may become warriors and fight in the name of Viscus, or they may seek out Animum's gifts and reclaim them. In exchange for the strength to fight they must give up the skill of study, while to reclaim their gifts they must rely upon them. They call this ongoing period in their history "The Repentance".
Stats
A Bellater recieves -2 to strength and +2 to wisdom or -2 to wisdom and +2 to strength depending on which of their two gods (Animum and Viscus respectivly) they worship.
All Bellaters suffer from the Curse of Viscus. This means that they must breath much more often than other races, giving them a -2 penanlty for all endurence related constitution checks and fort saves (e.g. to hold breath, keep running, etc).
A Bellater sleeps like most other humanoids but may miss a single night of sleep before suffering any ill effects (warriors and scholars often found themselves awake at odd hours and eventually they adapted).
Bellaters receive a +1 racial bonus on spot checks
Favoured Classes: Paladin (for worshipers of Viscus), Bellation Scavenger (for worshipers of Animum)
Appearence
Bellaters are very similar to humans and elves. They are about half way between the two in height and weight. Their eyes are a fairly defining feature, on average they are very slightyl larger than human eyes and tend to dart around, looking for threats or points of interest. Their skin has a very slight grey tint to it (very rarely some Bellaters are born with dark grey skin, however) while their hair has the same ranges of colours as human hair. The vital stats for a bellater are shown below.
Adulthood|Middle Age|Old|Venerable|Max Age
20|41|57|80|+3d20
Gender|Base Height|Height Modifier|Base Weight|Weight Modifier
Male|4'7"|3d6|100lb|x2d4lb
Female|4'5"|3d6|82lb|x2d4lb
Society
As the events of The Repentance have unfolded Bellatian society has rebuilt itself. Although Animum and Viscus are given a lot of reverance for obvious reasons there is a clear divide between the state and spiritual matters. In Bellatria (the small slither of their former empire the gods allowed them to keep) the Church and the Monarchy hold equal power, important matters are discussed in a public forum. Most Bellatian cities will have such a public forum, a representative of the Animum and Viscus Church and a representative of the current monarch (many Bellatian settlments in non-Bellatian countries will settle for a representative of that nation's government, however). Young Bellatians decide whether they will worship Animum or Viscus (thus deciding if they are to be a scholar or a warrior) when they come of age after 20 years. This is considered an important event, although no specific name is used to describe it. Viscus worshipers tend to be Fighters, Paladins or warriors, Animum worshipers tend to be commoners/experts, Bellation Scavengers or Bards.
Nameing
A Bellater's name tends to be made up of three parts: A first name, a title and a family name. The first name is either descriptive or from an ancestor (traditionally, someone who does something great or heroic will have the honor of having their name passed on to their seventh decendant), all names are either masculine or femanine however there is always a masculine and a femanine form of each (this means that its possible to pass on an ancestors name to a child even if they are of a different sex). A family will usually have records of when a child will be named for an ancestor. All first names should be derived from latin (either Latin words, corrupted Latin words or names of Latin origin (http://www.behindthename.com/nmc/rom-late.php)), typical examples include;
Masculine|Femanine|Meaning
Nanor|Nanatrix|Small, lightly built
Benedictus|Benedicta|Holy, Spiritual
Callistus|Callista|Attractive
Novius|Noviette|Unique, Modern
The second part of the name is a title. For most this is either Liber (anyone under 20), Viscusian (a worshiper of Animum) or Animite (a worshiper of Viscus). In some circumstances this may be replaced by a speacial title: Vir (for heroic or brave actions, someone awarded this title will have the first of the seventh generation of their decendants named after them), Centerian (if they live to be over 115), Gnarus (if they make a great discovery, this also entitles them to have a decendant named after them). If someone earns more than one title they may use any they want.
The family name is simply the first name of the earliest ancestor of the family, as a result they follow the same rules for first names.
Sorry about all the spelling errors. Any comments/criticisms?
Race: The Bellaters
History
The Bellaters started off as a race of warriors who were none-the-less known for their highly academic society. This situation came about due to the event which lead to the races very creation.
Approximatly 1000 years ago from the present day, two gods created their own races. The gods (both close friends) were named Animum and Viscus, and they named their creations, the Viscusians and the Animites respectivly, in honor of one another. Both races were intelligent and strong however their cultures took different paths. As Viscus was a god of war and battles, the Animites were a race of warriors, while as Animum was a god of knowledge the Viscusians were a race of scholars.
As a gift to their races the two gods made the lands they called their home (Bellatria) rich in the ore of a metal which came to be known as insolitium.
At first glance insolitium is identical to iron (apart from a greenish tint), although it is slightly easier to refine and so it was simply known as Bellatrian Iron and no speacial attention was paid to it. 500 years later interbreeding between the Viscusians and the Animites meant that they were essentually the same race (although Animum and Viscus hadn't made them too dissimilar in the first place, and most of the other races weren't even aware this was the case, assuming the differences were merely cultural) and their culture had merged into one which valued both martial and academic prowess. This new race was known as the Bellaters. This event is known in Bellatrian society as "The Gain".
Approximatly 400 years ago the true power of insolitium was discovered. A group of adventurers (who's names have long since been forgotten) visited the lands. One of the group's members, a fighter, had his sword damaged and so it was repaired by a Bellatrian smith, who naturally used the insolitium which was abundant in his homeland. The adventurers then (on buisness unknown) entered the etheral plane. During their adventure, the fighter fell and the party was forced to leave his equipment (including the sword) behind and carry back his semi-concious body. When they returned to the material plane a Bellatrian theif decided to take advantage of their weakened state and tried to rob them. The party's cleric gave the Fighter a potion in order to heal him and told him to run for help, as he would be no use unarmed. Unfortunatly the theif ran strait towards the vunerable fighter. Suddenly, the fighter's sword appeared back in his hands and the theif was quickly cut down. The true power of Bellatrian Iron had been uncovered.
The Bellaters were quick to study this property and found that if an object made (at least partly) of insolitium was placed on the etheral plane then the true owner would be able to call it at will to the material plane. This lead to a series of technological and mystical leaps for the Bellaters. Unfortunatly the warrior side of the society overcame them as the study of technology was influenced by its martial implementation. Soon they ruthlessly carved a great empire, enslaving or destroying nation after nation. Even the lowest ranking foot soldiers could call powerful armour, weapons and armies of metal golems to their side and no-one could stand up to their might.
Furious at both the misuse of their gift and their maltreatment of other races Animum and Viscus cursed their creations. Animum stripped them of their knowledge of technology and mechanics leaving them worse off than a kobold striving to place stakes at the base of his pits, while Viscus cursed their breath forcing them to lose their breath faster than an elderly elven mage, walking to his own bookshelf. This is known in Bellatrian society as "The Loss".
Over time, as they watched Bellaters reduced to scrambling around their own decaying cities, trying desperatly to find scraps of stored food, the two gods felt remoursful for having acted so rashly. And so they gave their people a chance to redeem themselves. So they allowed them to choose: they may become warriors and fight in the name of Viscus, or they may seek out Animum's gifts and reclaim them. In exchange for the strength to fight they must give up the skill of study, while to reclaim their gifts they must rely upon them. They call this ongoing period in their history "The Repentance".
Stats
A Bellater recieves -2 to strength and +2 to wisdom or -2 to wisdom and +2 to strength depending on which of their two gods (Animum and Viscus respectivly) they worship.
All Bellaters suffer from the Curse of Viscus. This means that they must breath much more often than other races, giving them a -2 penanlty for all endurence related constitution checks and fort saves (e.g. to hold breath, keep running, etc).
A Bellater sleeps like most other humanoids but may miss a single night of sleep before suffering any ill effects (warriors and scholars often found themselves awake at odd hours and eventually they adapted).
Bellaters receive a +1 racial bonus on spot checks
Favoured Classes: Paladin (for worshipers of Viscus), Bellation Scavenger (for worshipers of Animum)
Appearence
Bellaters are very similar to humans and elves. They are about half way between the two in height and weight. Their eyes are a fairly defining feature, on average they are very slightyl larger than human eyes and tend to dart around, looking for threats or points of interest. Their skin has a very slight grey tint to it (very rarely some Bellaters are born with dark grey skin, however) while their hair has the same ranges of colours as human hair. The vital stats for a bellater are shown below.
Adulthood|Middle Age|Old|Venerable|Max Age
20|41|57|80|+3d20
Gender|Base Height|Height Modifier|Base Weight|Weight Modifier
Male|4'7"|3d6|100lb|x2d4lb
Female|4'5"|3d6|82lb|x2d4lb
Society
As the events of The Repentance have unfolded Bellatian society has rebuilt itself. Although Animum and Viscus are given a lot of reverance for obvious reasons there is a clear divide between the state and spiritual matters. In Bellatria (the small slither of their former empire the gods allowed them to keep) the Church and the Monarchy hold equal power, important matters are discussed in a public forum. Most Bellatian cities will have such a public forum, a representative of the Animum and Viscus Church and a representative of the current monarch (many Bellatian settlments in non-Bellatian countries will settle for a representative of that nation's government, however). Young Bellatians decide whether they will worship Animum or Viscus (thus deciding if they are to be a scholar or a warrior) when they come of age after 20 years. This is considered an important event, although no specific name is used to describe it. Viscus worshipers tend to be Fighters, Paladins or warriors, Animum worshipers tend to be commoners/experts, Bellation Scavengers or Bards.
Nameing
A Bellater's name tends to be made up of three parts: A first name, a title and a family name. The first name is either descriptive or from an ancestor (traditionally, someone who does something great or heroic will have the honor of having their name passed on to their seventh decendant), all names are either masculine or femanine however there is always a masculine and a femanine form of each (this means that its possible to pass on an ancestors name to a child even if they are of a different sex). A family will usually have records of when a child will be named for an ancestor. All first names should be derived from latin (either Latin words, corrupted Latin words or names of Latin origin (http://www.behindthename.com/nmc/rom-late.php)), typical examples include;
Masculine|Femanine|Meaning
Nanor|Nanatrix|Small, lightly built
Benedictus|Benedicta|Holy, Spiritual
Callistus|Callista|Attractive
Novius|Noviette|Unique, Modern
The second part of the name is a title. For most this is either Liber (anyone under 20), Viscusian (a worshiper of Animum) or Animite (a worshiper of Viscus). In some circumstances this may be replaced by a speacial title: Vir (for heroic or brave actions, someone awarded this title will have the first of the seventh generation of their decendants named after them), Centerian (if they live to be over 115), Gnarus (if they make a great discovery, this also entitles them to have a decendant named after them). If someone earns more than one title they may use any they want.
The family name is simply the first name of the earliest ancestor of the family, as a result they follow the same rules for first names.
Sorry about all the spelling errors. Any comments/criticisms?