Hello! I've been spending some time putting a few races together for a more high powered campaign. This is one of my finished products! Please let me know what you think of the race's design, both in them and game mechanics. Thanks! ^-^
A rare sight in the material plane of mortals, nightstalker elves are mortal beings with a strong tie to the plane of shadows. While far from dark or evil in nature, nightstalker elves are often misunderstood by the other civilized races around them. Many confuse nightstalker elves for a sub-race of drow and as such, nightstalker elves often avoid coming into contact with non-elves when at all possible. They construct vast treetop cities in the densest and darkest forests across the globe and will spend their time honing their hunting skills and magical talents.
Nightstalker elves have a natural affinity for arcane magic of the shadow school. This natural connection nightstalker elves have to the plane of shadow has lead them to try to understand the workings of all arcane magic. In pursuit of obtaining this understanding, many of the treetop villages constructed by the nightstalker elf people contain colleges dedicated to the magic arts and the magical study of all things arcane in nature. In addition to these grand colleges dedicated to understanding the weave, every nightstalker village also has a grand hall dedicated to hunting.
Perhaps their most favored tradition, nightstalker elves enjoy hunting the fierce creatures of the dark woods they call home. Nightstalker elves often go off in small hunting parties riding on the back of large spiders during their hunt. To keep their large unnatural mounts housed, fed, and protected every treetop village with a hunting lodge is constructed over a spider’s nest with an odd under-village stable built to house the domesticated vermin.
Their odd choice of mounts and pets coupled with their darker appearance doesn’t do the nightstalker elves any justice for gaining favor of the other civilized races of the world. Though not at all like their spiteful backstabbing cousins, the drow, nightstalker elves uphold themselves to a strict code of law, morals, and ethics that many find hard to believe until meeting face to face with nightstalker elf society themselves.
Nightstalker elves look incredibly similar to a cross between their drow cousins and common undead, though in actuality they are not like either. They stand at about the same height as a human, and have light gray colored skin. Their eyes are a dull steel gray with their hair being a slightly lighter gray itself. Their entire body seems to be completely devoid of color in every way, everything from skin, eyes, hair, nails, and teeth being a shade of gray or black. They are extremely slender and curvy, even the males possessing a very feminine quality to their shape and overall appearance. When fully clothed it is common for outside races to mistake a nightstalker elven male for a female. Nightstalker elves are surprisingly lightweight for their size and due to their connection to the plane of the shadows they live extremely long lifetimes.
Society: Living together for the pursuit of knowledge and understanding is the most accurate and truthful way to describe a treetop village of nightstalker elves. Though most outsiders would not naturally come to this conclusion without actually living amongst the elves themselves. Nightstalker elf society doesn’t place a burden on rank or social standing. Their people merely are who they are and they each do what they can to help the others in their society live on in peace.
Relations: While not intending avoid anyone or anything, nightstalker elves make no great effort as a society to become involved in global events or politics. As a species, nightstalker elves find other races fascinating and spend hours observing those who wander into their lands our a genuine desire to learn more about them. However, many nightstalker elves do not concern themselves with leaving their homeland to pursue the ideals and cultural heritage of other creatures. They consider themselves far too busy with honing the art of stealth and hunting and learning the mysteries of the weave to find time to venture out into the vast world outside of their dark forests.
Alignment and Religion: Nightstalker elves often do not waste time dealing with law or chaos. Their people live peacefully together out of a mutual understanding of everyone’s part to play in their treetop community and a net of safety cast over them by the dark forests they reside in. Many outside influences and races do not reach nightstalker society as many living creatures and races fear to venture so deep into the dark forests across the globe. This has allowed for nightstalker elves to live peacefully in a world where the threat of outsiders invading them is not present. Religiously speaking, nightstalker elves revere the god Deneir, who they have christened “Lord of Shadows.” Many others know Deneir to actually be “Lord of Knowledge.” The title given to him by the nightstalker elf community is actually a clever allegory using the word “shadows” as a substitute for “secrets.” This, nightstalker elves will claim, is referring to the knowledge Deneir keeps protected that is still out there to be learned and discovered.
Adventurers: Finding a nightstalker elf adventurer is not too terrible hard if you look in the dark forests and caves dotting the globe. However, finding one who has dared to adventure out into the common world is a rarer sight. Despite their general disinterest in the outside world as a race, there are a few nightstalker elves who take it upon themselves to seek out knowledge in the world to collect and bring back to their treetop village. Though many who set out on these adventuring journeys never return, there are always those who will try to brave the sunlit world in the name of greater understanding.
Male Names: Alaglade, Caussith, Kylent, Maurion, Nyle, Remus, Rictor, Romulous.
Female Names: Artamia, Kylie, Listila, Myfornia, Paticia, Rena, Sylvia, Zynthia.
- Ability Score Racial Traits: Nightstalker elves are exemplars of physical perfection and gain a +2 to all ability scores.
- Type: Nightstalker elves are outsiders with the native subtype.
- Size: Nightstalker elves are Medium creatures and thus receive no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
- Speed: Nightstalker elves have a base speed of 30 feet.
- Languages: Nightstalker elves begin play speaking Common, Elven, and Sylvan. Nightstalker elves with high intelligence scores can choose any of the following as bonus languages: Celestial, Draconic, Dwarven, Giant, Gnome, Orc, or Undercommon.
Defense Racial Traits
- Shadow Resistance: Nightstalker elves have an unnatural tether to the shadow plane and thus have cold resistance 5 and electricity resistance 5.
- Natural Armor: Nightstalker elves are hardier than most of elven kind and gain a +2 natural armor bonus to their Armor Class.
- Elven Immunities: Nightstalker elves are immune to magic sleep effects and gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws made against enchantment spells and effects.
- Shadow Blending (Su): Attacks made against a nightstalker elf while she is within areas of dim light have a 50% miss chance instead of the normal 20% miss chance. This trait does not grant total concealment; it just increases the miss chance.
Feat and Skill Racial Traits
- Hunter of Shadows: Nightstalker elves are naturally attuned to observing others while remaining masked and hidden. Because of this, perception and Stealth are always considered class skills for a nightstalker elf.
Magical Racial Traits
- Blade of Shadows (Su): As a swift action, a nightstalker elf can manifest any melee weapon of its choosing from the shadow plane. The manifested weapon is made of shadows and deals damage as if were of a medium sized weapon of that type. (For example; a conjured bastard sword would deal 1D10 slashing damage, a morning star would deal 1D8 bludgeoning and piercing damage, and a rapier would deal 1D6 piercing damage). The weapon conjured from the shadow plane is non-magical, non-masterwork, and must be one the nightstalker elf is familiar with (one she has proficiency for). If the blade is dropped, thrown, sundered, disarmed, or otherwise removed from the nightstalker elf’s hand, the weapon disappears. If this happens, the nightstalker elf may manifest a new blade of her choice on her next turn as a swift action. The blade may not be used to harm incorporeal creatures unless they are shades or shadows and may not be enchanted or enhanced with other spells or spell-like abilities, and the nightstalker elf may only manifest one blade at a time.
Magical Racial Traits (Continued) - Concealed In Shadows (Su): Nightstalker elves seem to have a field of swirling, looming darkness around them at all times. This darkness grants them a 20% concealment bonus (20% miss chance) from attackers. As nightstalker elves are not incorporeal nor invisible; ghost touch weapons and see invisibility spells do not bypass this miss chance. However, a creature that has true seeing or a creature with the true seeing spell cast on it negates this miss chance when making attacks against the nightstalker elf.
- Elven Magic: Nightstalker elves have a +2 bonus on caster level checks made to overcome spell resistance. In addition, they also receive a +2 racial bonus on Spellcraft checks made to identify the properties of magic items.
- Unnatural Hunters (Su): Nightstalker elves are treated as having a constant spider climb spell active as a supernatural ability. The caster level for this ability equals the nightstalker elf's total character level.
Offense Racial Traits
- Shadow Weapon Mastery: Nightstalker elves are proficient longbows (including composite longbows), shortbows (including composite shortbows), and treat any weapon with the word "elven" in its name as a martial weapon.
Senses Racial Traits
- See in Darkness: Nightstalker elves are shadow incarnate and can see perfectly in darkness of any kind, including that created by spells such as deeper darkness.
Weakness Racial Traits
- Elemental Vulnerability: Nightstalker elves are vulnerable to fire.
- Enemy of the Sun: Due to their strong connection to the plane of shadows, nightstalker elves suffer 1 point of constitution damage for every hour they are exposed to direct sunlight. A nightstalker elf can avoid taking the constitution damage by keeping her skin covered while spending time outside during daylight hours. The constitution damage is healed 1 point for every hour the nightstalker elf returns to an area of complete darkness.
- Light Blindness: Abrupt exposure to bright light blinds a nightstalker elf for 1 round; on subsequent rounds, she is dazzled as long as she remains in the affected area.
- Negative Energy Affinity: A nightstalker elf is alive, but is tethered to the plane of shadows. Because this, she is healed by negative energy and harmed by positive energy, as if she were an undead creature.
This is an NPC race right? Because otherwise, wow.
Does concealed in darkness get the benefit of shadow blending? It seems like it would which means auto permanent 50% miss chance.
What RP do you total this as?
It was 41 RP when finished. And it was made for a specific campaign. It's not something I plan to always allow for.
Why are you doing something like this as a race? Obviously this is not intended as a PC race so why not just write it up as a monster. This seems more like a Djinn or other monster “Race” than an actual race.
yeah, so, how am i supposed to say anything other than OP, what do you actually want critiqued about it?
I will just Ecco the others. What kind of advice or critique are you looking for?
It is un fit to use as a PC race.
If every body play this race it May help but you will still screw your game over.
I think you need to explain more what you need a race of Super guys for, and why they all need to be super.
Shouldent they also have the elf subtype?
Also the aligntment part dosent really make sense"they live in a society where every one is happy with his place but they dont "waste time" on law or chaos". What does mean?
I can see a use for shadow elfs but i dont see a use for super shadow elfs that are not really elfs and pehaps are mostly true neutral.
I would look at the different creatures already changed by the plane of shadow, tone Down the strengths and pehaps get rid of some of the weaknesses as well.
If i wanted to use them in anything but a oneshot.
Why are you doing something like this as a race? Obviously this is not intended as a PC race so why not just write it up as a monster. This seems more like a Djinn or other monster “Race” than an actual race.
This.
What kind of advice or critique are you looking for?
Also this. I can discuss the flavor, but I'll need to read it over a time or two more before then. It seems to me like this race is meant to be used for the shadowy assassin type of villain's right hand mook.
Okay, I got a fluff question -- what's up with the connection to shadows? I don't feel that the fluff given really accurately explained why these elves have ties to the Plane of Shadow. Are they supposed to be native to the Shadow Plane? Because the entry doesn't do much to make me imagine them living in a realm of eternal shadows and twilight. They like dark forests, they stay in hiding, they worship knowledge... they really just sound like reclusive grey elves, but dressed up in the cool colors of the drow.
Why does a race that believes in truth and understanding also dedicated to stealthy and a reclusive lifestyle? If it were knowledge I could understand, but part of understanding is communicating and being open with others. It's strange that there is an air of mystery around a race that sounds like it should be openly communicating with others to learn their perspectives--unless racial pride is crippling the elves' own efforts to learn. Or the nightstalker elves believe as much in keeping secrets as they do in finding them.
This is personal taste, but I generally have no interest in hearing about how misunderstood a race is unless it's specifically in the relations section. Perhaps my games are crapsack worlds, but I generally start with the assumption that most races misunderstand and discriminate against each other to some degree. So making a point about how a race is feared and misunderstood is, to me, about as redundant as making a point about how good-looking a female PC is--by now it's generally assumed that secretive, dark races are going to be mistaken for evil most of the time. Though to be fair, their superficial similarities with the drow are important to point out as a more specific source of mistrust.
Just my impressions, made hastily during a break--feel free to rebuke.
Hmm ignoring the powerlevel, I would tie Enemy of the Sun and Concealed in shadows together. If they are covered to protect themselves from the sun damage it should repress the CiS ability.
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Maybe it would be helpful to point out that one of the other PCs is playing a gargoyle, and a third is playing this custom giant race.
- Tribal giants gain +8 Str, +4 Con, +4 Wis, and -2 Cha.
- Type: Tribal giants are humanoids with the giant subtype.
- Size: Tribal giants are Large creatures and thus take a -1 size penalty to their AC, a -1 size penalty on attack rolls, a +1 bonus to their CMB and CMD, and a -4 size penalty on Stealth checks. They take up a space that is 10 feet by 10 feet and have a reach of 10 feet.
- Speed: Tribal giants have a base speed of 40 feet.
- Languages: Tribal giants begin play speaking Dwarven and Giant. Tribal giants with high intelligence scores can choose from the following: Common, Elven, Orc, or Undercommon.
Defense Racial Traits
- Natural Armor: Tribal giants have a +3 natural armor bonus to their Armor Class.
- Rock Catching: Tribal giants can catch Small, Medium, or Large rocks (or projectiles of similar shape). Once per round, a tribal giant that would normally be hit by a rock can make a Reflex saving throw to catch it as a free action. The DC is 15 for a Small rock, 20 for a Medium rock, and 25 for a Large rock (if the projectile provides a magical bonus on attack rolls, the DC increases by that amount). The tribal giant must be aware of the attack in order to make a rock catching attempt.
- Stability: Tribal giants receive a +4 racial bonus to their CMD when resisting bull rush or trip attempts while standing on the ground.
Offense Racial Traits
- Rock Throwing: Tribal giants are accomplished rock throwers and have a +1 racial bonus on attack rolls with thrown rocks. A tribal giant can hurl rocks up to two categories smaller than her size. A "rock" is any large, bulky, and relatively regularly shaped object made of any material with a hardness of at least 5. A thrown rock has a range increment of 120 feet. The tribal giant can hurl the rock up to five range increments. Damage from a thrown rock is 2d6 plus 1-1/2 times the tribal giant's Strength bonus.
- Hatred: Tribal giants receive a +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against humanoids of the goblinoid and orc subtypes.
- Weapon Familiarity: Tribal giants are proficient with dire flails, greataxes, greatclubs, and greatswords.
Senses Racial Traits
- Low-Light Vision: Tribal giants can see twice as far as a race with normal vision in conditions of dim light.
The flavour definitely feels like it could use some tweaking. As it is they sound like idealized loners who are terribly misunderstood but also better than everyone else (both in terms of being a powerful race and being generally enlightened). Which... I guess is interesting to some people? I'm not a fan. As Marco Polaris pointed out at minimum you need to reconcile the reclusivity with the value for knowledge.
+2 to all ability scores seems a bit boring to me - I generally like races that have some suggested strengths and weaknesses (even if the weakness is just a lack of a bonus).
I'd give them a dodge bonus instead of a natural armour bonus - their Con already makes them much tougher than normal elves and dodge just feels more elven than... thick skin? Maybe the Dodge feat for free, if you want to encourage the race to take the resulting feat chains.
Shadow Blending should definitely not be allowed to stack with Concealed in Shadow - Blending's power is based on the assumption that it's a circumstantial bonus. It might be a good idea to pick one or the other.
Shadow Weapon is neat but could stand to scale a bit, gaining a few extra abilities according to character level, otherwise it'll become almost useless very quickly and that's no fun. See (if you haven't already) the shadow weapon spell; consider scaling as such with a saving throw equal to 10 + 1/2 character level + Cha.
I agree that covering oneself for Enemy of the Sun should have downsides attached, whether mechanical or social, because otherwise the disadvantage is pretty meaningless.
A +1 bonus to caster level for (shadow) spells seems extremely appropriate.
Compared to the Giant it's significantly lacking in offensive power but very strong on the defense (especially Concealed in Shadow). This makes it pretty good for a caster/rogue as you described on the other thread, but be careful how the player multiclasses - it's very easy to mess up a rogue/caster compared to a giant bruiser, so the nightstalker character could easily be underpowered compared to the giant. (Same for the garyogle, really - it's a pretty neat race but needs more thought to build well than "get two-handed weapon, point at enemy")