Race Teaser
Owen K.C. Stephens
Sorry I missed a couple of weeks of updates -- I got a pretty bad flu and wasn't even really keeping up with day-to-day things. However I am recover(ing) now, so I wanted to share one of the WotA race write-ups with you!
As always this is a work in progress, and it represents one of the races that is more than a creature with access to mutations as a starting character. Without further ado... the Morlock!
Morlock
Morlocks are an off-shoot of humanity that has adapted to life in complete darkness. They may have evolved from beneficial and stable mutations that enabled them to better survive the Dark Years that followed the Apocalypse. When the sun returned the morlocks discovered that the world above was no longer for them, at least not while it shined. During the day morlocks prefer to remain underground or deep within caves and ruins. Only during the night do they feel comfortable moving across the land. While most races in the world have indulged in cannibalism, morlocks have a particular reputation for eating the flesh of other races.
Physical Description: Morlocks are identical to their human cousins in height, although morlocks tend to be slimmer creatures. A morlock’s hair and skin lack pigmentation, giving them an almost ghostly appearance. They also have sharper teeth, indicative of their carnivorous diet. Morlock eyes appear to be jet-black in light (their pupils are so wide that even the iris is difficult to see beneath their eyelids) and glow dull red in the dark. Most morlocks wear special goggles that mute the glow as well as allow them to see better in the daylight.
Society: Morlocks were one of the first races to really organize themselves during the Dark Years – or at least they are descended from groups who held on to rules and traditions leftover from the Age of Light. As a result, morlock societies tend to echo philosophies, laws, and even religions from the Old Times, adapted and twisted for their current situation. However what elements from the Age of Light have been retained, and exactly how its been perverted by centuries of living in the darkness and surviving through organized cannibalism and the worship of ancient technologies, varies widely between different morlock tribes.
Morlocks have problems trusting others, including their own kind, so morlock societies tend to be small and utterly devoted to a single leader, often an elder with psychic abilities. Morlock tribes are generally only stable while their leader is strong and vibrant – when a leader grows weak or timid, the tribe turns on itself until a new leader emerges (often cementing his or her command by publicly eating the heart of the previous leader).
Relations: Morlocks blame humans for the fall of the Age of Light, so their attitudes towards humanity borders on arrogance. Morlocks get along well with skitters and have no strong feelings towards other races. Most races are wary of morlocks, as morlock tribes generally indulge in cannibalism.
Alignment: A morlock’s philosophy is generally shaped by the society of his birth. Adventuring morlocks tend to be rugged individualists with little use for strict laws and rigid society, but there are some morlock communities that place the good of the whole over the wishes of the individual. Most morlocks have little use for non-morlock societies as a whole as long as such societies leave them alone.
Adventurers: Morlock adventurers are actually quite common, as competent mercenaries that can see in the dark are always in high demand. Some are outcasts (in many cases those who backed the wrong side in a struggle to determine a new tribal leader), while others are raised from birth knowing they will be “sent out” when they reach maturity to ensure the tribe doesn’t outgrow its resources.
Morlocks are wicked warriors,
using their short weapons to slash enemies apart piece by piece. Though
rarely trusted by outsiders and often standoffish when first working
with a group of non-morlocks, a morlock that adopts a group as its new
tribe is often fiercely loyal to its companions -- though it would
strive not to let its allies discover how deep its feelings went.
Morlock Racial Traits
+2 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom, -2 Charisma. Morlocks are fast and perceptive, but their appearance and reputation often unsettle others.
Medium: Morlocks are medium creatures and have no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
Fast Speed: Morlocks have a base speed of 40 feet.
Darkvision: Morlocks can see in the dark up to 60 feet.Keen Senses: Morlocks receive a +2 racial bonus on Perception checks.
Light Sensitivity: Morlocks are dazzled in areas of bright sunlight.
Psychic Affinity: Morlock minds are naturally predisposed toward psychic abilities. A morlock receives a +2 bonus to all skill checks made to use or resist psychic abilities.
Weapon Familiarity: Morlocks are proficient with all light melee weapons, and treat any weapon with the word “morlock” in its name as a martial weapon.
Languages: Morlocks begin play speaking Tradespeak. Morlocks with high Intelligence scores can choose any languages they want (except secret languages, such as Druidic). See Linguistics in Skills of the Apocalypse for more information about these languages.
Scott Holmes
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Warlords of the Apocalypse" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to warlords-of-the-apo...@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to warlords-of-t...@googlegroups.com.
Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/warlords-of-the-apocalypse?hl=en.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.