Abilities and Restrictions

a. Charge Attack: The creature is capable of making a charge attack, gaining a +2 bonus to attack and inflicting double damage with an impaling weapon such as a spear, javelin, or lance. Aarakocra perform a diving attack, centaurs charge like knights, and bullywugs leap at their enemies.

b. Move Silently: The creature can move silently, as the thief ability, with a base success of 40%, +5% per level.

c. Hide in natural settings: The creature can hide in natural settings, just as a thief can hide in shadows. The base success chance is 35%, plus 5% per level. If a flat percentage score appears next to this ability, use this score instead; for example, a satyr’s abilities include c(90%), which means that a satyr has this ability with a 90% success chance.

d. Infravision: The character possesses infravision (the ability to see in the dark) to a range of 60 feet.

e. Surprise opponents: When alone or with a group of similarly stealthy creatures, the character gains a bonus on his chance to surprise his enemies. Bugbears inflict a –3 penalty on opponents’ surprise checks. A bullywug using its chameleon power inflicts a –2 penalty to opponent’s surprise checks, or a –6 if the bullywug attacks with a leap from a place of concealment.

f. Amphibious: The character is at home in either water or air environments. Combat penalties for fighting in water do not apply to the character, although using Type S or B weapons underwater is still very difficult. Bullywugs are true amphibians and can breathe water; lizard men are still air-breathers, but they can hold their breath for a number of rounds equal to 2_3 their Constitution score before checking for drowning.

g. Leap: The character’s powerful leg muscles enable him to make astounding leaps, bounding up to 30 feet forward or 10 feet into the air. Leaping to close with an enemy is considered a charge attack, and the character suffers double damage if he lands on a spear or similar weapon set against a charge. Bullywugs gain the special ability to inflict double damage with a leap. Note that thri-kreen can actually leap 50 feet forward or 20 feet in the air, but they do not gain this ability until they reach 3rd level.

h. Detect new construction: The creature has natural skills for mining, and can spot new or unusual construction with the percentage score noted. This is similar to the dwarven or gnome abilities as described earlier in this chapter.

i. Detect sloping passages: The creature can note subtle grades or slopes in underground passageways and chambers with the percentage score noted.

j. Detect sliding or shifting walls: The creature can detect walls that move or shift with the percentage score noted.

k. Attacked last: The character comes from a race notorious for its cowardice and ineffectiveness in combat. Consequently, enemies are likely to dismiss the character as a negligible threat and concentrate their attacks on other, more impressive, members of the character’s party unless the character displays some unusual prowess, powerful magic, or skill.

l. Hard to surprise: The monstrous character’s keen senses make it very difficult to surprise him. The character receives a +2 bonus to all surprise checks.

m. Tracking: The character’s sense of smell is so acute that he can track, as per the tracking proficiency, with a 50% chance of success. Normal modifiers for old or confused trails may apply.

n. Spell immunity: Minotaurs have the unique power of immunity to maze spells, due to their familiarity with labyrinths and other such places.

o. Fearlessness: Minotaurs also enjoy a +3 saving throw bonus versus fear, including fear, scare, cause fear, or emotion spells, dragon fear, and similar effects.

p. Sound mimicry: Mongrelmen have the ability to perfectly imitate any sound they hear. They cannot create magical effects such as a harpy’s song, a sphinx’s roar, or a shout spell by imitating these sounds, although they can duplicate the non-magical aspects of these sounds exactly.

q. Pick pockets: Mongrelmen also have the ability to pick pockets as the thief ability, with a success chance of 70% plus 5% per level.

r. Create magical pipes: Satyrs can create pan pipes that can cast charm, sleep, or cause fear effects within a 60 foot radius. To gain this ability, the satyr must invest 4 character points in the music/instrument trait when first created, and then devote 2 character points to the Music proficiency at least three times. He can’t spend more than 2 character points per level on the proficiency, so the earliest he can gain this ability is at 3rd level. The pipes themselves are easily crafted and have no magical properties; it’s the satyr’s unearthly skill that creates the magical effects.

s. Magic resistance: The character is magic resistant. Giff have a flat 10% magic resistance, while githzerai have a magic resistance of 5% per level—for example, a 6th-level githzerai has a magic resistance of 30%.

t. Antennae: A thri-kreen’s antennae give it a sensitivity to motion and serve to lessen darkness-based combat penalties by 1 point while fighting enemies within 15 feet.

u. Paralyzing bite: At 5th level, a thri-kreen gains the ability to paralyze its prey with a bite. The victim must save versus poison or be paralyzed 2–16 rounds (1–8 rounds if larger than man-sized, or only 1 round if size H or larger.)

v. Dodge missiles: At 7th level, a thri-kreen gains the ability to dodge thrown or fired missiles with a roll of 9 or better on a d20.

w. Racial weapons: At 5th level, a thri-kreen automatically gains proficiency in the chatkcha, a crystalline throwing wedge commonly used by the mantis warriors. At 7th level, the character gains proficiency in the gythka, a thri-kreen polearm. Consider these weapons to be equal to a javelin and a bill-guisarme respectively for damage, range modifiers, etc.—but note that the chatkcha returns to its thrower if it misses its target.

x. Swan form: Swanmays may polymorph themselves into a swan form at will. While in swan form, they can only be struck by +1 or better weapons, can fly at the listed rate, and have a magic resistance of 2% per level. A swanmay’s equipment and belongings remain behind when she transforms. The swanmay requires a magical token (a cloak, ring, or similar item) to perform her transformation, and if she loses it she can no longer transform until she gets it back.

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