In many campaign settings, ancient races leave a legacy or two behind when they pass from the world. The Giants of Xen’drik in Eberron, Netherese in Faerun, and Suloise in Greyhawk are all examples. Rising from the ruins of their creators, I’d like to present….
The Taldar
“Our creators are gone,
Ended is their reign
Old foes press on,
And we remain.
The old gods did fall,
Proud and vain,
Yet our duty we recall,
And we remain.
Awoken at last,
To wage war again,
Blades of the past.
We shall remain.”
~A Taldar chant~
“Eons ago, before even elves walked this world, the ancient evil Hresh was formed from emanations from the Far Realms. An immense horror spun from the cloth of nightmares, it twisted life wherever it went, forming an army of aberrations to do its bidding. Empire after empire fell to the unending horde, and hope was fading with each passing day.
The last of the great nations, to hold against the endless tide, forged the Taldar; tireless machines of war to halt the aberrations’ advance. They rose above expectations. In mere weeks, they achieved a greater victory than any previous military effort had, driving the horde back to Hresh’s primary hive. To save its life, the abomination fled into space, never to be seen again.
Slowly, the world recovered, returning to its natural course, but all was not well. The Taldar were created with the personalities and memories of great heroes, and were as close to living as pure constructs could be. Each capable of thinking independently and bearing wills and ambitions above mere servitude, the Taldar chaffed at their present state; bound to the do their creators’ bidding. As an era of peace arrived, the war machines that accompanied the Taldar on the field of battle were either dismantled or placed into stasis. Fearing a similar fate, they rebelled against their creators, who still saw them as no more than mere machines. They inflicted great losses upon the capital before being locked away in stasis themselves for what could have been the rest of time.
Millenia passed, and their creators were no more. What happened is still a mystery, but none of their race yet remain. The Taldar, however, endured. Preserved in stasis, they were awakened only when explorers tampered with the device that kept them so. In the years since “The Awakening”, as they call it, they have fortified their prison into a citadel, and begun striving to recover the machines that were locked away all those years ago. They don’t share it aloud, but they are preparing for war. Not with the races of this world, but Hresh and its aberrations. The Taldar believe it is only a matter of time until it returns to seek vengeance upon them. Until that day comes, it cannot be said what they will do, but we can only hope that when this “Hresh” returns, the Taldar will be waiting.”
~Tor Graycloack, sage.
Built as machines of war, the Taldar are intelligent constructs capable of prolonged conflict. They lack some of the traditional immunities of constructs, but are typically more intelligent and better able to think and adapt to new situations.
Personality: The Taldar often come across as cold or distant to other races, view which may seem to be supported by the quiet determination they exhibit during combat. However, outside of combat the Taldar can be quite personable. Some have hobbies or trades and more than a few have been known to tell stories of their exploits. Emotions can be difficult for some Taldar to comprehend, but most can “remember” the lives they were imprinted with to understand living races.
Physical description: The Taldar are humanoid in configuration, fashioned from silver and gray metal. Most have lights/glowing portions, commonly orange in color, but others are possible. Two other characteristics that distinguish them from warforged are their physical structure and lack of mouth. Purifiers cannot ingest consumables, and their speech is generated through a mix of psionics and technology.
Spoiler
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For an image, google SC2 protoss purifier. Unfortunately my link to the Starcraft wiki is broken.
Relations: The Taldar have yet to become acquainted with most races, but have come to know a few well. Humans are confounding to the Taldar, both in their ability to survive and the disunity that plagues them as a race. Dwarves are enjoyed as company, as both races are apt to trade war stories and converse on the topic of crafting/forging metal. Elves are respected for their magical ability and longevity, but are seen as weak by the Taldar. Halflings, gnomes, half-elves, and half-orcs have not been encountered as of yet.
In Eberron, warforged are seen with varying viewpoints. Some embrace them like cousins, while others see them as an inferior replica.
Elans (Expanded Psionics Handbook), are treated coldly, if not with outright hostility. The Taldar have not forgotten their ancient war with Hresh and its aberrations.
Alignment: Taldar tend toward lawful alignments. Their military background has left order as an integral aspect of their society. Good is more common than evil, as they were programmed to protect the defenseless.
Religion: The Taldar do not follow any deities; none have shown concern for them, so they give the same unconcern in return. They acknowledge that deities exist, but do not worship them. As such, Divine Minds (Complete Psionic) are rare and divine casters of any sort are unheard of.
However, some Taldar do have strong beliefs about universal ideas to become Ardents (Complete Psionic). The Conflict, Force, Freedom, Guardian, and Knowledge mantles are most commonly chosen.
Lands: The Taldar possess little territory, consisting of a central fortress and surrounding outposts.
Languages: Common and Kalahr. The Common tongue has been learned by the Taldar to communicate with other races in the new world they found when they rose out of the ruins of the empire that forged them. Kalahr is a mental language spoken between Taldar through the short range telepathic conduit they share.
Names: Most Taldar names are longer and have a archaic sound to them.
Spoiler: Naming
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I would suggest googling protoss names or a protoss name generator for this.
Adventurers: Taldar typically adventure either to explore how the world has changed since their stasis or to seek out the glory of combat once again.
Spoiler: racial stats
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•Construct Type: The Taldar are actual constructs, not Living Constructs like the warforged. That being said, they do differ from standard constructs in a few ways…
-A Taldar derives its Hit Dice, base attack bonus progression, saving throws, and skill points from the class it selects.
-Unlike other constructs, the Taldar possess a Constitution score and do not gain bonus hit points based upon size.
-Unlike other constructs, the Taldar do not possess low light vision.
-Taldar do not possess immunity to mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, phantasms, patterns, and moral effects).
-Taldar are immune to poison, sleep effects , paralysis, disease, nausea, fatigue, exhaustion, effects that cause the sickened condition, energy drain, death effects, and positive/negative energy damage.
-Unlike other constructs, Taldar are subject to critical hits, nonlethal damage, stunning, ability damage, and ability drain.
-Taldar cannot heal damage naturally as most living creatures do, nor be repaired by healing spells, but see repair cycle below.
-The construction of Taldar makes them vulnerable to start spells the fax. Taldar take damage from sheet metal and chill metal as if they were wearing metal armor. Likewise, a Taldar is affected by it repel metal or stone as if they were wearing metal armor.
-A Taldar responds differently from living creatures, and standard constructs, when reduced to 0 hit points. A Taldar with 0 hit points is disabled, just like a living creature. They can only take a single move action or standard action in each round, but strenuous activity does not risk further injury. When its hit points are less than 0 and greater than -10, a Taldar is inert. They are unconscious and helpless, and cannot perform any actions however, a Taldar does not lose additional points unless more damage is dealt to them.
-Taldar cannot neither be raised nor resurrected.
-Taldar do not need to eat sleep or breathe and cannot benefit from the effects of consumables.
-Although Taldar do not need to sleep, they must still rest the required amount of time to regain spells/power points.
•Medium: As Medium Constructs, Taldar have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
•Taldar base land speed is 30 feet.
•Repair Cycle: To lengthen the Taldar’s life expectancy in the field, and decrease reliance upon repair effects, their creators built in a repair cycle which enables the Taldar to power down to self-repair.
Every continuous four hours spent in repair cycle enables the Taldar to repair one point of damage per level. Thus, if a first-level Taldar soulknife spent eight hours in a repair cycle, it would repair two points of damage.
When the Taldar enters a repair cycle, it is treated as asleep for the purpose of listen checks. They may rouse themselves as a full-round action.
•Unity Matrix (Su); The Taldar can communicate telepathically at a short range (30ft.) with any creature that they are a language with. It was named the unity matrix for enabling the Taldar to coordinate on the battlefield.
•Taldar are naturally psionic, gaining one bonus power point at first level.
•Automatic Languages: Common and Kalahr. Bonus languages: None. The Taldar have not been awakened long enough to be able to learn other languages.
•Favored Class: Soulknife (Expanded Psionics Handbook). A multiclass Taldar’s soulknife class does not count when determining whether they take an experience point penalty for multiclassing.
Spoiler: Feat
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Advanced Plating
The heavy armor plating that most Taldar bear was made optional to enable Taldar arcanists to avoid having their gestures fouled.
Prerequisites: Taldar
Benefit: The Taldar gains armor plating that takes up the body slot. It is treated as medium armor, grants a +7 armor bonus to AC, Light Fortification (25% to ignore critical hits), their base land speed is unchanged, and the maximum Dexterity bonus to AC is +4. Spell failureIt may be enchanted as normal armor.
Special: May only be taken at first level.
Spoiler: new spells
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Spells:
As constructs cannot be raised/resurrected, new magic was required
Rebuild
Transmutation
Level: Sor/Wiz 5
Components: V,S,M
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Range: Touch
Target: Destroyed construct touched
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: None
You restore function to a destroyed construct creature. You can rebuild a construct that has been destroyed for no longer than one day per caster level. The construct has no choice in whether or not to be rebuilt.
Constructs never come back as good as they were prior to destruction. A rebuilt construct loses one level/one HD when rebuilt. Constructs with constitution scores and one HD instead lose two points of Constitution. Constructs with only one HD and no constitution score cannot be rebuilt. This level loss or Constitution loss cannot be repaired by any means.
The rebuilt construct is returned with only one hit point, and its remains must be mostly intact.
This spell neither grants ownership nor control over the rebuilt construct.
Material Component
Rubies worth a total of least 5,000 gp.
Reassemble
Transmutation
Level: Sor/Wiz 7
Components: V,S,M
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Range: Touch
Target: Destroyed construct touched
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: None
This spell functions like Rebuild, except that you are able to restore function to nearly any construct.
The condition of the remains is not a factor. So long as some small portion of the construct’s body still exists, it can be reassembled, but the portion receiving the spell must have been part of the construct’s body at the time of death. (The remains of a construct hit by a disintegrate spell count as a small portion of its body.) The construct can have been destroyed no longer than 10 years per caster level.
Upon completion of the spell, the construct is immediately restored to full hit points. However, the construct loses one level/one HD, or 2 points of Constitution if the construct had one HD and a Con. score. A one HD construct cannot be reassembled. This level loss or Constitution loss cannot be repaired by any means.
This spell neither grants ownership nor control over the reassembled construct.
Material Component
Rubies worth a total of least 10,000 gp.
Reconstruct
Transmutation
Level: Sor/Wiz 9
Components: V,S,M
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Range: Touch
Target: Destroyed construct touched or unambiguously identified
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: None
This spell functions like Rebuild, except that you can reconstruct a construct that has been destroyed for as long as 10 years per caster level. This spell can even bring back construct whose bodies have been destroyed, provided that you unambiguously identify the destroyed in some fashion (reciting the time and place of crafting or destruction is the most common method).
Upon completion of the spell, the construct is immediately restored to full hit points with no loss of level, HD or Constitution points.
Material Component
Rubies worth a total of least 25,000 gp.
Spoiler: New Powers
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Repair Damage
Psychometabolism
Level: 1
Display: Mental
Manifesting Time:
Standard ActionRange: Touch
Target: Construct touched
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will half (harmless)
Power Resistance: Yes (harmless)
Power Points: 1
With the faint sound of a hammer on an anvil, the construct’s from twists and mends.
The target construct is repaired by 1d8 hit points.
Augmentation: For every two additional power points spent, the damage repaired increases by 1d8.
Inflict Damage
Psychometabolism
Level: 1
Display: Mental
Manifesting Time: Standard Action
Range: Touch
Target: Construct touched
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will half
Power Resistance: Yes
Power Points: 1
With the faint sound of rendingsteel, the construct’s from twists and warps.
The target construct is damaged by 1d8 hit points.
Augmentation: For every two additional power points spent, the damage repaired increases by 1d8.
Spoiler: Taldar Soulknife Racial Substitution Levels
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Taldar Purifier
The Taldar Purifiers were the elite of the Taldar soulknives, able to both endure longer and fight better.
Hit Dice: 1d12
Requirements:
Taldar, levels 1,
Class Skills
Skill changes: no change
Skill Points at Each Level: 4+Int modifier (4x(4+Int modifier) at first level.)
CCLASS NAME
| Level |
Base Attack Bonus |
Fort Save |
Ref Save |
Will Save |
Special |
|---|
| 1st |
+1 |
+2 |
+0 |
+2 |
Mind Blade, Wild Talent, Purifier |
| 3rd |
+3 |
+3 |
+1 |
+3 |
Psychic strike +1d8, Purifier’s Blade |
| 4th |
+4 |
+4 |
+1 |
+4 |
+1 Mind Blade, Kinetic Shielding |
The following changes are made to the soulknife for first level and all future levels. Full BAB, d12 Hit Dice, Good Fortitude and Will saves, and poor reflex saves.
This replaces the Weapon Focus (mind blade) feat gained at first level.
Purifier’s Blade: The Taldar Purifier may ignore one point of DR, except DR/-, per class level of purifier.
Kinetic Shielding: The Taldar Purifier gains DR 1/- , which increases by one for every 4 levels after 4th.
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