Travel Memoirs: Otherlands...
Greetings fellow
travelers
Recently
I have finished reading DLR1 Otherlands for the Dragonlance Campaign Setting
(Ad&d 2nd edition). Thanks to the new digital age, classic books
can be reprinted and become available for anyone. So what is so special about Otherlands? To be honest nothing is
special or crucial and it will most of the time fall out of notice from most
DMs. But what it is worth of? The answer is that it belongs to a line of
accessories that are easily read, like a short fiction stories. And here lies
the true value of the Otherlands. It
feels like a 19th century travel memoirs. From the 1st
page till the end you can easily travel far away from the known world of
Ansalon.
Dragonlance
holds a special place in my heart and although I have read most of the books,
rules and modules but I didn’t have the chance actually running or playing it.
Now as I’m working for the conversion of Dl1 Dragons of Despair for Classic
Modules Today I took some time and I present you a bizarre race for your
campaign based at Dungeon Questing by Mikael Hassel. The race belongs to
Charane, a place further south from the Ice Wall. Beyond South Pole we
go…
Because the new race is also a monster
(at the point of view of humanoids) I’ll use two separate paragraphs. The first
it would be the monster block and the second the race block:
Razhak
Armor Class: -2 [14]
Hit Dice: 15
Attacks: Slam 1d6, up to 4 per round if
angered
Special: Regeneration
Move: 12 or 3 through stone.
HDE/XP 15/290
Razhaks are creatures that can easily be
mistaken as earth elementals. They stand almost 9’ feet tall and they tend to
spend their time in stone form. Everyone has seen a Razhak in our lives but it
is impossible to distinguish their form inside rocks. They can even change the
color of the skin to match the rocky surroundings. Their lifespan is almost a
millennium and they tend to follow the simple rule: observe but not
interfere.
Following the
simple rule, the benevolent Razhak prefer not to engage in direct combat and
they tend to use their ability to travel through rock to avoid it. But in dire
situations they are fierce combatants. In one round they can create 4 pseudo
pods allowing them to attack 4 times per round especially when they angered.
There are a few famous last sayings like: angry stones rumble like
cataclysm.
Razhaks are
not adventurers and they tend not to travel but sometimes fate is been decided
for them. A number of cataclysmic events can separate a Razhak from its natural
environment. Most lost Razhaks are
usually are young ones and they haven’t inherited yet the ability to go back to
their home. These young Razhaks can be used as new race.
Adventure
hooks
·
After a cataclysmic event (in the classic version
that earth is been separated…) a young Razhak loose his way to a human village.
·
During a great earthquake a Razhak erupts to the
surface. He/she sees a small village in danger and decides to help the
villagers.
Young Razhak race abilities
Starting
hit points: 10 +
Constitution
Weapon
and Armor restriction:
Razhaks cannot use any weapon or armor. Instead they are using the gifts of
nature.
Armor
of stone: Razhak natural
armor is 2 [10] and it gets better during lifetime.
Hands
of earth: Razhaks can
attack once per round for 1d6 using one of their 4 pseudo pods. But when
angered (maybe after a unsuccessful saving throw or when the storyteller
judges) he can attack 4 times per round.
Embrace
of the earth: Once per
day young Razhaks can meld into a stone formation matching its surroundings. As
long as Razhak stays in that state he can regenerate 1d6 HP per turn (10
minutes) to a maximum of current hp.
Further
notes on Razhaks
Weight & Height: Ranges from 5’ 8’’ – 7’/ 150-300 lbs
Starting age/Lifespan: Ranges from 150-1500
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