One of my players in our upcoming RotRL campaign is wanting to play a psionic character, and is specifically interested in playing a Half-Giant. I like a lot of the psionic fluff that other members of the community have come up with (origins of the Elans in ancient Thassilon, Xephs coming from Xia Tian, etc), but I just don't see how half-giants fit into the world. Any thoughts on where they might be from?
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Half-giant ancestors are Varisian giants who were warped by runic magic. Rune giants (from one of the RotRL books beastiary's), can't remember if they're infertile or not. But even if they are, there are always exceptions. They had their way with other giant ladies, and their offspring were stunted runts. The runts turned out to possess psionic potential, thanks to the rune magic taint, and bred true.
Thousands of years later, the half-giants roam the Varisian mountains in nomadic tribes. Always on the move from other giants, and never welcomed by smaller creatures, the half-giants fend for themselves, their psionic powers helping their defense.
I'm with Lopke.
Also, think carefully about how you'll integrate a giant PC into this path. Remember that Mokmurian is forcefully recruiting all giants in Varisia into his armies, for example. Also take a look at how a rune giant's special attacks will be extra-hard on him.
My entire party consists of half-giants (using the template from the Advanced Bestiary rather than the psionic race, but the concept stays the same), and it completely turned volume four on its ear. This was a great deal of fun for the players, but required some additional prep work.
Thanks for the input everyone! I like the whole descended from Rune Giants thing - ties the race in nicely with the adventure path. Also, thanks tbug for the specific pitfalls - I'll have to check it out. All in all, it could make for an interesting tie in.
Rune giants , can't remember if they're infertile or not. But even if they are, there are always exceptions. They had their way with other giant ladies, and their offspring were stunted runts.
I don't think other giant ladies would survive a natural coupling with a rune giant.
And on Golarion, it is said that ogres are the degenerate offspring of humans and giants, if I recall correctly.
Allow me to suggest an alternative relationship between Half-Giants and Rune Giants. Rather than blood relatives, Half Giants are the descendants of the giants who fled the tyrannical influences of Thassilon.
Consider that the only way to reliably evade the dominating power of a Rune Giant is to either avoid them altogether or else have an incredibly strong will to resist them. Consider also that at the time of Ancient Thassilon, the Kingdom of Azlant still stood as a shining beacon of civilization not far from Thassilon's shores, and that behind the scenes, the Aboleth (a race known for their psionic powers) were still attempting to manipulate the humans they had more or less created.
My thought is that a group of giants (likely fire giants given the bonus to saves vs. Fire that Half-Giants enjoy) could have sought sanctuary from the Rune Giants by sailing to Azlant. There, they interbred with the human population and took up the study of the psionic arts, hoping that by developing the powers of their minds, they might learn to resist the domination of the rune giants and one day retake their homeland from the Rune Lords. Unfortunately, before this dream could be realized, the Aboleth tired of the Azlanti, and destroyed them, along with Thassilon and pretty much everyone else. As with the human survivors of Azlant, the Half-Giants took to the sea and fled to Avistan, where they live in secluded enclaves or among the great cities of the other races. They continue to practice the psionic arts, and pass down legends of the ancient evil which once enslaved the minds of their ancestors, although they have long since forgotten most of the details.
Thus, your Half-Giant PC is in a perfect position to fulfill the destiny of his people...to hone his mental defenses to resist the influence of the Rune Giants and bring an end to their tyranny once and for all. How's that for tying it into the AP?
-C. Robert Brown
I don't think other giant ladies would survive a natural coupling with a rune giant.And on Golarion, it is said that ogres are the degenerate offspring of humans and giants, if I recall correctly.
After going over the fluff on Rune Giants, I totally agree. I'm taking a slightly different tack. Half-Giants are the result of some of the early experiments that eventually led to Rune Giants. Early experiments resulted in stunted giants, but still a viable servant race. Their psionic ability was an unexpected side effect of their creation. After the fall of Thassilon, small groups of Half-Giants banded together to form nomadic communities in the hills of northern Varisia, forming the same sort of concept as noted above.
I'm also going to play with the description of Half-Giants from the XPH to make them something that can't be mistaken for Big ol' Humans - probably changing their skin color and such. I will keep the community posted as it develops.
Some really cool stuff!
Hmmm.... me likey. Looks like I've got some work to do to incorporate all of the coolies everyone is throwing around.
Have you considered using ogre-kin instead of half-giants? They already have a place in the world, and give a player an extra "overcoming negative stereotypes" roleplaying hook.
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Have you considered using ogre-kin instead of half-giants? They already have a place in the world, and give a player an extra "overcoming negative stereotypes" roleplaying hook.
And a rather nasty "overcoming a heritage of your ancestors all being inbred freaks!" roleplaying hook. Now, if actually you're in the mood for a PC that looks like one of Mammy Graul's brood, then by all means, go for it, but I'd tend to recommend more the stunted descendant of a Rune Giant path than the "more evidence of just what the hell is wrong with Nicolas Logue" one.