Feats: Power Attack -1/+3
Aspect of the Beast: Wild Instinct: +2 Init, +2 Survival
Endurance
Weapon Finesse
Traits: Chance Savior: +2 Init
Eyes of the Wild: +2 perception in natural settings
Skills:11 Acrobatics(+4 jumping) (2 +4 racial +5 Dex)
3 Kn(Nature) (2 +3 class -2 Int)
8 Perception (3 +3 class +2 Wis)
3 Sense Motive (1 +2 Wis)
9 Stealth (1 +3 class +5 Dex)
9 Survival(+2 track, +2 nature) (2 +3 class +2 Wis +2 feat)
7 Swim (1 +3 class +3 Str)
The Kangaroo Race:
Based off the Kangaroo monster entry:
Kangaroos get racial modifiers of +2 Str, +6 Dex, +4 Con, -8 Int, and -4 Cha.
They have a base speed of 50ft, giving them a +8 to jump with acrobatics, and also get a +4 when not jumping.
They get a +2 natural armor bonus.
In addition, they have senses of low-light vision, darkvision of 60ft and scent.
Humble Beginnings:
Joey was once an animal companion to a mighty warrior named Carl who would bring Joey with him on his adventures. During this time, Joey saw many things, both wonderful and alarming. He had many allies, his favorite of which was an elven cleric named Sylfiah.
Sylfiah was always there for Joey, healing his wounds and protecting him from danger. She gifted him with a blessed amulet that awoke him to the dangers he was facing.
What does an animal companion do when it begins to understand its situation? In Joey's case, he stayed, using his improved awareness to help his companions in their fight against evil. Eventually his companion, Carl, retired from adventuring to fight for a different cause and Joey left him to explore the wilderness and find other animals like himself.
The Martial Marsupial:
Joey soon realized that he could not survive in the wilds alone. Larger animals would chase him away from the best food and water, while smaller ones would gather in large groups that were hard to defeat. Joey felt, despite his own strength, that he might need the help of others.
One day, a small group of fledgling adventurers came near the place he was resting, making such loud noises. Couldn't they smell the orcs? The orcs set upon the adventurers and the small group started to put up a pathetic defense.
One of the men just wouldn't shut up and started shooting a small spray of snow. The other ran around, trying unsuccessfully to get behind one of the orcs. The woman hid near a tree and started chanting something to herself. It was obvious they needed help.
Joey leaped to the rescue, kicking one of the orcs full on in the back and knocking it to the ground. His sudden appearance made the other orcs think they had fallen into an ambush, and they ran.
The small group was thrilled to have been saved and the woman even seemed to speak his language. They invited him to join their strange family, welcoming him as a fellow adventurer and mascot.
The Foot of Fall:
Joey traveled across the plains and through the forests, travelling towards the city his new companions were native to.
In one of the great forests they encountered a wild giant which made his group nervous. The giant turned towards the group, looking for its next meal, and started running towards them. The party attacked from a distance at first, but the giant quickly caught up to them, grabbing at the casters.
Joey jumped to the rescue, landing a heavy kick upon the giant's heel and crashing it to the ground, knocking it into the very tree it was guarding. Though impaled, the giant tried to fight on until the roguish warrior landed a great strike upon its throat.
His party would sometimes thereafter call him the Foot of Fall as an inside joke.
The Cult of the Foot:
Joey embodies the Animal(Fur), Community(Family), Liberation(Revolution), Strength(Resolve), and Luck(Fate) domains.
His greatest herald is the Leaping Lumberjack, less formally known as Carl the Woodsman, once a member of Joey's original party. He's a human known for his acrobatic prowess and striking quickly with his hatchet.
Carl is the founder of the Cult of the Foot, a group which sees Joey's awakening as a sign that animals need to be awoken to the true dangers around them so they can choose how they want to live their lives.
Joey's Tie:
Sylfiah, a woman in Joey's original group, created a blessed amulet for Joey to make him stand out from the others of his kind. He has worn the tie ever since, thankful to be shown such gratitude and acceptance by a human, the race most often known to treat his kind like slaves.
Group Conduct:
Joey is not the best at communicating with others, for obvious reasons, but he does try to help out when he can. This often means bouncing around the battlefield brutally bashing enemies to the ground, making them much easier targets for others. And hey, who wouldn't want a kangaroo for a friend?
The Fun in Playing an Animal:
For those who haven't played an animal character, there is much fun to be had. For example, an animal can tilt his head backwards, lifting his chin in a direction to point to something being there, then tilt his head to the side twice to indicate going around.
However, the other players might interpret this as there being something curious in that direction, and eagerly go forward to meet it. The worst thing you can do to an animal is make it speak, but even then its mind works differently.
Instead of an eloquently speaking of the dangers it sees, it might respond with "scary monster holding big thing go that way,"using its motions in tune with its words, which again can be misinterpreted.
