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Thanks for the help in advance. All criticism appreciated. I am still working on the background, but they are going to be a race of humans who have been tainted by the plain of shadow.
XP 200
Shadan rogue 1
CN Medium outsider (native)
Init +3; Senses darkvision 120 ft.; Perception +5
Defense
AC 17, touch 14, flat-footed 13 (+3 armor, +4 Dex)
hp 10 (1d8+2)
Fort +2, Ref +6, Will +1
Weaknesses light blindness
Offense
Speed 30 ft.
Melee scimitar +4 (1d6/18–20)
Ranged hand crossbow +4 (1d4/19–20)
Special Attacks sneak attack +1d6
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 1st)
1/day—darkness
Statistics
Str 11, Dex 19, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 8
Base Atk +0; CMB +1; CMD 14
Feats Weapon Finesse
Skills Acrobatics +7, Bluff +5, Disable Device +7, Escape Artist
+7, Intimidate +1, Perception +5, Sense Motive +5, Sleight of
Hand +7, Stealth +9
Languages Dark Speak, Common, Undercommon
Su Shadow blend, See In Darkness
Ecology
Environment any land
Organization solitary, pair, or gang (3–5)
Treasure NPC gear (studded leather armor,
scimitar, hand crossbow with 20 bolts)
Special Abilities
Shadow Blend (Su): In any conditions other than full
daylight, Shadan can disappear into the shadows, giving
it total concealment. Artificial illumination, even a
light or continual flame spell, does not negate this ability,
but a daylight spell will.
See in Darkness (Su): Shadan can see perfectly in darkness
of any kind, including that created by deeper darkness.
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So a race that gets 50% concealment and the ability to hide 100% of the time every time in a dungeon... or anywhere that isn't the middle of the day on a flat plain....
That ability alone should push this into the +2 CR category by itself, let alone a +4 to a single stat at character generation. They went with the +2,+2,-2 for a reason, so no one class would automatically be chosen to be X race.
That being said, I do really like the See in Darkness
- See in Darkness (Su): Shadan can see perfectly in darkness
of any kind, including that created by deeper darkness.
- Shadow Blend (Su): In any conditions other than full
daylight, Shadan can disappear into the shadows, giving
it total concealment. Artificial illumination, even a
light or continual flame spell, does not negate this ability,
but a daylight spell will.
- darkvision 120 ft
+4 Dex -2 Str
CR 1/2
None of the racial abilities are particulary suited for use by player characters, being open to abuse. Aside from the darkvision which would be redundant in itself with the 'see in darkness' ability.
See in darkness and shadow blend are not abilities you should give lightly to pcs, they should be powerful PrC or template abilities if given at all.
+4 on a single ability score is more powerful than +2 twice, if this is to be a pc race it will have to be seriously downgraded.
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- See in Darkness (Su): Shadan can see perfectly in darkness
of any kind, including that created by deeper darkness.- Shadow Blend (Su): In any conditions other than full
daylight, Shadan can disappear into the shadows, giving
it total concealment. Artificial illumination, even a
light or continual flame spell, does not negate this ability,
but a daylight spell will.- darkvision 120 ft
+4 Dex -2 Str
CR 1/2
None of the racial abilities are particulary suited for use by player characters, being open to abuse. Aside from the darkvision which would be redundant in itself with the 'see in darkness' ability.
See in darkness and shadow blend are not abilities you should give lightly to pcs, they should be powerful PrC or template abilities if given at all.
+4 on a single ability score is more powerful than +2 twice, if this is to be a pc race it will have to be seriously downgraded.
This is where I got these features just so you can see.
“Shadow” is a template that can be added to any corporeal
aberration, animal, dragon, fey, giant, humanoid, magical beast,
monstrous humanoid, plant, undead, or vermin (referred to
hereafter as the base creature).
A shadow creature uses all the base creature’s statistics and
abilities except as noted here. Do not recalculate the creature’s
Hit Dice, base attack bonus, saves, or skill points if its type
changes.
Illus. by M. Phillippi
CHAPTER 8
NEW
MONSTERS 168
Size and Type: Animals or vermin with this template
become magical beasts, but otherwise the creature type is
unchanged. Shadow creatures encountered on the Material
Plane have the extraplanar subtype and are native to the Plane
of Shadow.
Speed: As base creature × 1-1/2.
Special Qualities: A shadow creature retains all the special
qualities of the base creature, and also gains the following:
— Resistance to cold equal to 5 + 1 per Hit Die, to a maximum
of 15.
— Darkvision out to 60 feet.
— Low-light vision.
— Shadow Blend (Su): In any conditions other than full
daylight, a shadow creature can disappear into the shadows,
giving it total concealment. Artifi cial illumination, even a
light or continual fl ame spell, does not negate this ability, but a
daylight spell will.
Shadow creatures also have one additional special ability
for every 4 Hit Dice they possess (minimum of one additional
ability) chosen from the following list:
— +2 luck bonus on all saving throws.
—Cause Fear (Sp): 1/day. Caster level 5th. The save DC is
Charisma-based.
—Damage reduction 5/magic.
—Evasion, as the rogue class feature.
—Fast healing 2.
—Mirror Image (Sp): 1/day. Caster level 5th.
—Plane Shift (Sp): 1/day, to or from the Plane of Shadow only.
Caster level 15th.
If the base creature already has one or more of these special
qualities, use the better value.
Skills: Same as base creature. Shadow creatures gain a +6
racial bonus on Move Silently checks.
Feats: Same as the base creature.
Environment: Plane of Shadow.
Organization: Same as the base creature.
Challenge Rating: Same as the base creature +1.
Treasure: Same as the base creature.
Alignment: Usually neutral evil.
Advancement: Same as the base creature.
Level Adjustment: Same as base creature +2.
Dar k Creeper CR 2
XP 600
CN Small humanoid (dark folk)
Init +3; Senses see in darkness; Perception +4
Defense
AC 16, touch 14, flat-footed 13 (+2 armor, +3 Dex, +1 size)
hp 19 (3d8+6)
Fort +3, Ref +6, Will +1
Weaknesses light blindness
Offense
Speed 30 ft.
Melee dagger +6 (1d3/19–20 plus poison)
Special Attacks death throes, sneak attack (+1d6)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 3rd)
At will—darkness, detect magic
Statistics
Str 11, Dex 17, Con 14, Int 9, Wis 10, Cha 8
Base Atk +2; CMB +1; CMD 14
Feats Skill Focus (Sleight of Hand), Weapon Finesse
Skills Climb +8, Perception +4, Sleight of Hand +7, Stealth +8;
Racial Modifiers +4 Climb, +4 Perception, +4 Stealth
Languages Dark Folk
SQ poison use, rag armor
Ecolo gy
Environment any underground
Organization solitary, pair, gang (3–6), or clan (20–80 plus 1
dark stalker per 20 dark creepers)
Treasure standard (dagger, black poison [3 doses], other gear)
Special Abilities
Death Throes (Su) When a dark creeper is slain, its body combusts
in a flash of bright white light, leaving its gear in a heap on the
ground. All creatures within a 10-foot burst must make a DC 13
Fortitude save or be blinded for 1d6 rounds. Other dark creepers
within 10 feet are automatically blinded for at least 1 round, due
to their light blindness. The save is Constitution-based.
Poison Use (Ex) Dark creepers are skilled in the use of poison
and never risk accidentally poisoning themselves. Dark
creepers favor a foul-smelling black paste distilled from
certain deep-underground fungi known as black smear—
injury; save Fort DC 15; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds;
effect 1d2 Str; cure 1 save.
Rag Armor (Ex) A dark creeper’s multiple layers of filthy rags
function as leather armor when worn by one of their kind.
See in Darkness (Su) A dark creeper can see perfectly in darkness
of any kind, including that created by deeper darkness.
Dark creepers lurk in the black places deep below
the surface of the world, venturing forth at night or
into neighboring societies when the urge to steal and
cause mayhem grows too great to resist. Endless layers
of f ilthy, moldering black cloth shroud these small
creatures, leading some to believe that the creature
inside is smaller still. Usually encountered in groups,
dark creepers f lee from bright light, but are quite brave
in the dark.
Dark creepers stand just under 4 feet tall and weigh
80 pounds. Their f lesh is pale and moist, and their eyes
are milky white. Dark creepers exude a foul stench of
sweat and spoiled food, owing primarily to the fact that
they never take off their clothing—instead piling on new
layers when the outermost one grows too ragged.
For all the mayhem and trouble a pack of dark creepers
can cause, this is nothing compared to the dangers a tribe
led by the taller, even more sinister dark stalkers represents.
Dark creepers treat their tall, lithe masters almost like
gods, presenting them with offerings and obeying their
every whim. Invariably, several dark stalkers serve as
leaders to dark creeper tribes, with all of the tribe’s heavy
work and labor falling on the diminutive shoulders of the
creepers, freeing the dark stalkers for their own decadent
pleasures. Yet the dark creepers themselves see no inherent
imbalance in this arrangement—to a dark creeper, a life in
the servitude of a dark stalker is a life fulfilled.
Filthy, reeking black rags wrap this small humanoid from head to
toe, leaving only its hands and pale white nose visible.
Cyclops–Dark Creeper
53
I can change the stats around but I really want these two abilities on the Race. What weakness other than being dazed and blinded in bright light can I put in to balance the race?
They could take lethal or non lethal damage from light depending on its intensity e.g spell level in hp / round, or vunerability to light (50% extra damage from searing light etc)
First of all, I'd consider their CR to be equal to their class level, not one lower.
This is where I got these features just so you can see.** spoiler omitted **...
Shadow blend is from a template that has a level adjustment of +2, and See in Darkness is from a monster that is not considered to be a viable player race by default.
Coupled with +4 in an ability score means that they're more powerful than the standard races, probably significantly so.
So you should either disallow them as player characters (or compensate those who use those weaker races) or adjust the race.
My suggestion:
+2 Dex, +2 Wis, -2 Str (switch wis for int or cha if you like)
Shadow blend: The creature can disappear into the shadows, giving it total concealment. This only works in dim light
Light blindness: Exposure to bright light blinds shadan for 1 round. On subsequent rounds, they're dazzled as long as they stay in the bright light.
See in darkness: They see perfectly in darkness.
That I might consider to be okay.
There is a post about building races called the PF Race Building Guide. I'm a bit new to forums so I'm not quite sure how to post the link. It seems to be the best guide and pretty simple to use, and even has examples of how the system works with Core Races.
First of all, I'd consider their CR to be equal to their class level, not one lower.
This is where I got these features just so you can see.** spoiler omitted **...
Shadow blend is from a template that has a level adjustment of +2, and See in Darkness is from a monster that is not considered to be a viable player race by default.
Coupled with +4 in an ability score means that they're more powerful than the standard races, probably significantly so.
So you should either disallow them as player characters (or compensate those who use those weaker races) or adjust the race.
My suggestion:
+2 Dex, +2 Wis, -2 Str (switch wis for int or cha if you like)
Shadow blend: The creature can disappear into the shadows, giving it total concealment. This only works in dim light
Light blindness: Exposure to bright light blinds shadan for 1 round. On subsequent rounds, they're dazzled as long as they stay in the bright light.
See in darkness: They see perfectly in darkness.That I might consider to be okay.
This might be ok, in my campaign I try to avoid 'see in darkness' or similar abilities, not even so much because it is unbalancing it just makes for boring encounters.
Once the pc pops deeper darkness in the beginning of every battle, it takes alot of the fun describing the events and scenery from me as a DM.
Since it is mechanically a HUGE advantage it seems the tactical/logical thing to do, if that is not a problem for you go ahead.
- Perhaps you might consider blindsense as an ability instead, give it darkvision 120' and a racial bonus on perception and stealth +2.
- add shadow blend, light blindness and ability score adjustment as suggested by Kaeyoss.
- add the ability to cast cause fear and darkness 1/day
- +1 CR
Shadow Blend (Su): In any conditions other than full
daylight, Shadan can disappear into the shadows, giving
it total concealment. Artificial illumination, even a
light or continual flame spell, does not negate this ability,
but a daylight spell will.
In converting this ability to pathfinder it should read that this ability is usable in normal or darker light, but not in bright light. Two light spells would stack to create an area of bright light where the spell areas overlapped, as would two torches.
Though, if you want to keep this a CR1/2 race then you would probably have to drop that ability. Since it grants concealment the character would be able to hide in normal light conditions. That is simply too powerful for a CR 1/2.
As for see in darkness, I would say darkvision should be enough for a race normally, especially since the range is double what the other races get. though balance wise having the ability to see through magical darkness is not game breaking since it is just stopping two low level spells, one of which darkvision already overcomes.
My suggestion:
+2 Dex, +2 (mental score), -2 Str
Darkvision (60 ft)
+2 racial bonus on spot and stealth checks made in dim light or darkness.
and probably some other ability, something along the lines of:
+2 bonus on will saves against spells and effects of the [shadow] subschool. (you said tainted by the shadow plane so this would make some sense.)
or:
+1 to caster level and DC of spells of the [shadow] subschool.