I'm working on a campaign setting and I'm working on the races for it. They follow the same basic format of:
*+2 to any one stat or 2 +2s and a -2
*a Feat
*3 lesser abilities
*2 +2 saves
*3 +2 to skills
*Weapon Familiarity
Here are the various races minus most of the flavor text.
Dwarves: Not sure if I should bump the Natural Armor to +2. I'm trying to get rid of really specific effects like the Dodge bonus vs Giants.
•+2 to Constitution and Wisdom, -2 to Charisma.
•Size: Medium.
•Speed: Slow and Steady- 20’, but Dwarves do not suffer any penalties to movement due to Armor or from Medium or Heavy loads.
•Endurance: as the Feat. If Endurance is gained from another source then this becomes the Die Hard Feat instead.
•Darkvision 60’
•Stability: +4 to Combat Maneuver Defense to resist Trips and Bull Rushes when on the ground.
•Thick Skinned: +1 to AC from Natural Armor
•Hardy: +2 to save versus Spells, Spell-like Abilities, and Poisons.
•Stonecunning: Dwarves gain +2 to Appraise, Crafts, Knowledge: Engineering, and Perception when dealing with earth, stone, metal, and crystals.
•Weapon Familiarity: Dwarves treat Battle Axes, Light and Heavy Picks, and Warhammers as Simple Weapons. They also treat weapons with “Dwarven” in it as Martial Weapons.
•Languages: Common and Dwarven. Bonus Language: Dwarves with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following list: Giant, Gnomish, Goblinoid, Orcish, Terran, and Undercommon.
Elves: Mortal vessels for the Sidhe. They have no memories of their immortal selves.
•+2 to Dexterity and Charisma, -2 to Constitution.
•Size: Medium.
•Speed: Normal- 30’
•Fey Magic: An Elf may cast Detect Magic and one other Cantrip of the player’s choice from Light, Read Magic, or any Cantrip from the Enchantment or Illusion schools. An Elf may cast these two Cantrips as if she was a Sorcerer equal to ½ her character level (minimum of 1).
•Low Light Vision
•Light Sleepers: Elves can operate with only 4 hours of sleep a night (though they still require 8 hours of rest to recover expended spells and abilities). They also only suffer -5 to Perception checks while sleeping, rather than -10.
•Timeless: Elves do not suffer any negative effects from aging. They do gain any bonuses they would normally receive from aging. They are also immune to any effects that would increase their age. If an Elf gains a similar ability, such as the Timeless Body ability of Druids and Monks, then that Elf will not die of old age.
•+2 to Save versus Enchantment and Illusion Effects.
•+2 to Perception, Spellcraft, and Use Magic Device.
•Weapon Familiarity: Elves treat Longbow and Shortbow, Longswords and Shortsword, and Rapiers as Simple Weapons. They treat any Exotic Weapons with “Elven” in it as Martial Weapons.
•Languages: Common and Elven. Elves with high Intelligence bonuses can choose from the following list of languages- Draconic, Gnollish, Gnomish, Goblinoid, Orcish, and Sylvan.
Gnomes: think of them as refuges from a culture like Atlantis. I wanted to make Gnomes distinct from Dwarves.
•+2 to Constitution and Intelligence, -2 to Strength.
•Size: Small.
•Speed: Slow- 20’.
•Breadth of Knowledge: as the Feat in the Advanced Player’s Guide but they do not need to meet the Age requirement.
•Low Light Vision.
•Insatiable Curiosity: Gnomes can detect magical traps as a Rogue can with Perception. If a Gnome gains this ability from another source, such as the Rogues Trap Finding class ability, then she gains +2 to such checks.
•Natural Linguists: Gnomes always have Linguistics as a class skill. If one of their classes has Linguistics as a class skill already then the Gnome gains two bonus languages as long as they aren’t secret like Druidic.
•+2 to save vs Illusions and mind effecting spells and spell-like effects.
•+2 to Diplomacy, Disable Devices, and Perception.
•Weapon Familiarity: Gnomes treat Hand Crossbows, Rapiers, and Repeating Crossbows as Simple Weapons. They treat any Exotic Weapons with “Gnomish” in it as Martial Weapons.
•Languages: Common and Gnomish. Gnomes with high Intelligence bonuses can choose any language that isn’t secret, like Druidic.
Half Elves: not the offspring of Humans and Elves. They are Elves born without a connection to the Sidhe.
•+2 to any one Stat of choice.
•Size: Medium.
•Speed: Normal- 30’
•Skill Focus: as the Feat for a skill of choice.
•Low Light Vision
•Multi-Talented: you may select a second Favored Class. You can choose to choose the same class as your first Favored Class and gain an additional benefit. If you do this, you must take two different benefits each level (i.e. an extra Skill Point and extra Hit Point).
•Minor Magic: as the Rogue Talent.
•+2 to Save versus Enchantment and Illusion Effects.
•+2 to Diplomacy, Perception, and Use Magic Device.
•Weapon Familiarity: Elves treat Longbow and Shortbow, Longswords and Shortsword, and Rapiers as Simple Weapons. They treat any Exotic Weapons with “Elven” in it as Martial Weapons.
•Languages: Common and Elven. Elves with high Intelligence bonuses can choose from the following list of languages- Draconic, Gnollish, Gnomish, Goblinoid, Orcish, and Sylvan.
Half Orcs: I'm treating Orcs like Neandertals so Orcs and Humans can cross breed.
•+2 to any one Stat of choice.
•Size: Medium.
•Speed: Normal- 30’
•Interesting Life: choose one from the following list of Feats- Acrobatic, Alertness, Animal Affinity, Athletic, Deceitful, Deft Hands, Magical Aptitude, Persuasive, Self-Sufficient, and Stealthy.
•Darkvision 60’
•Orcish Ferocity: the Half Orc can act as staggered for one round when brought below 0 Hit Points.
•Determination: once per game the Half Orc can spend a Hero Point to add +20 to any skill or stat check, rather than rolling.
•+2 to save versus Poison and Disease.
•+2 to Intimidate, Sense Motive, and Survival.
•Weapon Familiarity: Orcs treat Falchions, Great Clubs, and Great Axes as Simple Weapons. They treat any Exotic Weapons with “Orcish” in it as Martial Weapons.
•Languages: Common and Orcish. Orcs with high Intelligence bonuses can choose from the following list of languages- Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Gnollish, Goblinoid, and Halfling
Halflings: less friendly, more connected with nature.
•+2 to Dexterity and Wisdom, -2 to Strength.
•Size: Small.
•Speed: Slow- 20’.
•Heroic Luck (Feat): +1 to all Saving Throws.
•Agile: Halflings gain +4 to CMD versus Disarms and Trips.
•Fast Stealth: as the Rogue Talent.
•Animal Friendship: Halflings treat an animal’s NPC Reaction as one higher than normal, to a maximum of Friendly, so long as they do not act in a hostile or threatening manner.
•+2 to Save versus Fear and Compulsion effects.
•+2 to Acrobatics, Climb, and Perception.
•Weapon Familiarity: Halflings treat Kukris, Scimitars, and Shortbows as Simple Weapons. They treat any Exotic Weapons with “Halfling” in it as Martial Weapons. Also they treat any Exotic small dagger-like weapons and sling-like weapons as Martial Weapons.
•Languages: Common and Halfling. Halflings with high Intelligence bonuses can choose from the following list of languages- Druidic, Elven, Gnomish, Goblinoid, Orcish, and Sylvan.
Humans: they are buck the format a bit but I'm hoping it balances. I plan on using Hero Points for the game.
•+2 to any one Stat of choice.
•Size: Medium.
•Speed: Normal- 30’
•Bonus Feat: select one Feat that you meet the requirements for.
•Fast Learner (Feat): you gain an additional skill point each level.
•Bonus Class Skill: select one skill to add to your class skills at 1st level.
•Great Potential: +1 Hero Point.
•Weapon Familiarity: Humans are highly adaptable; they only suffer -2 to hit with weapons they are not proficient with.
•Languages: Common and one language of choice. Humans with high Intelligence bonuses can choose any language that isn’t secret, like Druidic.
Orcs: I'm a completionist. I know people might have a problem with giving them a Charisma boost, but I've found that Half Orc characters in previous additions have always had the most forceful personalities.
•+2 to Strength and Charisma, -2 to Intelligence.
•Size: Medium.
•Speed: Normal- 30’
•Diehard: as the Feat, but does not need the Endurance Feat. You will need to take the Endurance feat to qualify for any Feat that has Diehard as a prerequisite.
•Darkvision 60’.
•Quick Healer: Orcs gain +2 hit points from natural and magical hearing.
•Brawny: Orcs calculate their encumberance as if they were Large size. They are treated as Medium size in all other respects.
•+2 to save versus Poison and Disease.
•+2 to Acrobatics, Intimidate, and Survival.
•Weapon Familiarity: Orcs treat Falchions, Great Clubs, and Great Axes as Simple Weapons. They treat any Exotic Weapons with “Orcish” in it as Martial Weapons.
•Languages: Common and Orcish. Orcs with high Intelligence bonuses can choose from the following list of languages- Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Gnollish, Goblinoid, and Halfling
I plan on throwing in some other races but for now I just want feedback on balance.
Spell-like abilities need to be given limits. At will is awfully powerful.
Spell-like abilities need to be given limits. At will is awfully powerful.
The only ones who get that are Elves as the equivelent of a Feat though. Also they are only cantrips which several Pathfinder classes get at will. I want to make magic something innate to elves without making it useless for a non-spell casting character like the Elven Magic ability in PF Core and still make it handy for spellcasters. going 3/day with Detect Magic doesn't seem verry useful to me when a Sorcerer could just learn it and cast it when they want.
I gave Half Elves Minor Magic because it was not supposed to be their Feat, just a limited ability. If you have a suggestion for something that is useful for all classes, I'm all ears.