Mourning With A Star

It had taken me eternity to reach this place, but here I was. In a way, I never thought it was going to be so easy and, still, it feels as if I wasn't here, but I am. There is, nevertheless, a sensible lack for a sense of acomplishment. I am simply here. I can see the promising stars of many colors in the sky, and the misty blue clouds on the floor, roiling around my legs, making it all the more ethereal. It's a cool sensation. Not as in the expression, but like in the literal sense. As I bend my knees to touch the myst, I can feel the gentle coolness of it. And, yet, the most ethereal thing of all, would be the only source of objectivity in this place: the very reason for which I have traveled across the entire known universe into the realm of the forgotten. Perhaps you are wondering, at this point, why someone like me would take such pains only to visit someone of so little trascendence in the grand events of the cosmos. Perhaps you are fancying there is big and overarching reason behind this, something related to a great adventure or the safety of cosmos as we know it. The truth, however, is far more bleak and simpler: I, simply, didn't had any other place to go.

Yantra> [Walking towards the girl and speaking softly] Eh... Hello? ... [Looking away with a troubled smile] Am I... interrupting?
Starlla> [!] ... [Leaning away from the telescope and looking at Yantra] Hello. I'm sorry: I was watching the stars. [Looking up at the sky] Aren't they beautifull tonight?
Yantra> [Looking up as well] Aren't they always beautyful? ... Aren't they... [intaking some air as to contain a weeping spasm] the most beautyful thing ever? So far away... and yet... always granting us the light of their hope and warmth... And yet... [looking down for a brief moment before looking upwards again] ... there are persons who believe the cosmos isn't made of love... [closing his eyes and shaking his head slightly]
Starlla> [Turning to look at Yantra excited] Yes! [OwO] That's what I always tell people! ... [7_7] But people do not seem to understand... [owo] Yet you seem to do so well. ... [?][ó.o][Looking at Yantra curiously] Do we know each other? Forgive me: I remember the name of each star in the night sky even asleep, but I tend to forget the name of people so easily. [ó.ò]
Yantra> [Smiling resignedly] T-That's alright. Besides, I am someone who tends to be forgotten quite often, so is okay if you couldn't remember me. I'm nobody important, after all, so is okay. ... Ehm... [Shifting his eyes rather nervously] Can I sitt next to you? I-I promise I will not bother your star watching.
Starlla> Oh, sure! [Readjusting her telescope and getting back into watching position on the telescope chair] I don't get bothered easily, so don't worry. It's more the other way around: I tend to bother people a lot, so people is always upset with me. It's like I don't get people and people don't get me, so is best for someone like me to... [adjusting her telescope] ... remain here. Here, I can't bother anybody. Here... it's just me... and the stars. Here... nothing else matters.

And there was silence. As I satt, leaning my back against the stout structure of the telescope's support which reflected light on it's polished golden surface with a soft and diffuse halo, giving it a dream-like look, I felt somehow refreshed yet, at the same time, even more unimportant than when I came. It was no surprize, for I knew things were going to be like this, yet I wanted to come here, perhaps to bask a bit on her undisturbability, on her capacity of keeping eternal and pure. Untouched, unmarred, unchanged across time and space. The ultimate expression of a longing soul who had became one with her dream. This was her heaven: an eternal nightscape where to starwatch for all eternity. A one-dimensional paradise for a single minded heart and, yet, there was nothing wrong with it. On it's simplicity laid it's beauty. Nevertheless, for such a paradise, I was but a sore thumb, something completely out of place. And yet, in an utter display of egoism, I dared to make a most ungratefull request.

Yantra> [Speaking on a very soft voice] Do you mind if a cry for a while? I promise to not be too loud...
Starlla> [Leaning back from her telescope to look at Yantra at her feet] Why do you want to cry? Do you hurt somewhere?
Yantra> Yes... [touching his chest] ... my heart hurts.
Starlla> ... [Looking at the sky] *Sigh*... W-When a star enters the end of it's sequence, i-it liberates a lot of gamma rays a-a-and plasma flares, s-so... eh... I mean... eh... [Covering her face with a hand] *Ugh* I'm sorry, I... I just don't know... I-I just don't understand people... [Looking away] A-All I know about are stars... s-so... p-please, just do whatever you want... and don't let me bother you... [!]
Yantra> *Sniff*... [Letting the tears fall down silently]
Starlla> [ó_ò] oh... geez... [Scratching her head nervously] I did it again, right? I said something awfull...
Yantra> [Almost whispering with a cracked voice] No, dear... [cleaning himself a bit with a tissue] ... you didn't said anything awfull at all. *Sniff* Besides... I know you aren't good at getting people... *sniff* [Smiling resignedly] ... so it's okay.
Starlla> ... [Getting off from her telescope and sitting next to Yantra, yet looking at the horizon] See? I don't get people! Why in the world would you come to me knowing this?! I-I don't know what to do!
Yantra> [Smiling resignedly] And that's fine because you don't need to do anything. *Sniff* In fact, that's the very reason why I came here...
Starlla> [ô.o] Huh? [Looking at Yantra genuinely surprized]
Yantra> [Looking at the horizon] You see... *sniff* ... I'm about to loose something that is very dear to me. I tried my best to keep it, but I can no longer do it. I was... *sniff* ... pretty much hopeless. That's why I came here: because you are my hope.
Starlla> Me?! How?! [ô_o]
Yantra> [úwu] ... [Turning to look at Starlla with a gentle but sad smile] Because you are the proof that not all dreams need to be lost... that... [Slowly turning to look at the stars] ... now and then, some dreams are meant to be forever. ... [Closing his eyes] I came here to mourn my dream... because yours is... alive forever... and that, dear, grants the hope that, one day... *sniff*... I might become one with my dream... just like you did. *Sniff*
Starlla> ... W-Would it make you upset if I hug you right now? [ó.ò]
Yantra> No, dear... *sniff*... By all means, it would not... *sniff* [Hugging Starlla gently and tight]

And the tears flowed like rivers, as in a proper mourning. There I was, seeking consolation on the most unprepared entity of the universe, but I cared not. All my heart desired was a proper mourning and, even in all her akwardness, she gave it to me as the living dream she was for who would be more proper to mourn a dying dream than a living dream? I couldn't ask for a better wittness nor better unspoken words of passing. That's all I needed, that's all I had.

- Seemos Yantra
BGM: Unmei No Ko-Tachi Shoujo, Mawaru Penguindrum OST #7

Homebrew Rules & Expansions: Training (for Pathfinder's Downtime System)

The Writer

A common issue during character creation comes when a player draws his or her character concept from a movie, videogame, book, or anime which may share several points in common with 1 or 2 of the core classes that are stapple of fantasy TRPGs or any of the extensions of it (such as the new base and alternative classes presented by Pathfinder and similar games). The problem on itself comes when the player says "Character X can do this and, evidently, belongs to this class, but also has this ability that belongs to this other class without any of the other abilities of that other class". As stated by many, this happens because cinematic and literary characters aren't built around the concept of character progressions as they aren't game characters per sé. Nevertheless, that doesn't means a Rogue cannot learn how to do alchemical brews, or that a Fighter may not learn how to Sneak Attack if given the means to train such abilities.

The idea behind the class progressions is to grant characters a sort of "heroical identity" and a "role" on the party, but such a concept ceases to work too well when the party in question is reduced to 3 or less players. With versatility becoming more and more necesary, the downside of cross-classing and loosing such indentity for the sake of filling in the gaps becomes a sort of "sure sentence" eventually. In my humble opinion, this shouldn't be the case ever. A Wizard should be able to brave the world with the same ease as a Fighter and, thus, no player should feel pushed to roleplay a character they do not like simply because said character is rather "useless" on it's own or without a particular team member. Some would argue that a Wizard can learn to swing a sword at 1st. Lvl. by using a Feat, and that's true. Nevertheless, that also means the said Wizard will have to endure, with it's meager HP, until  3rd. Lvl. before being able to catch some other Feat that might grant him or her better battle oriented focus, and it's fine but, we are talking about a character with, probably, an INT score of 18 (at the par with Einstein), and you tell me he can't learn how to swing a sword or even a broad spectrum of weapons like a meat-headed Fighter? It sounds ridiculuous to me but there is a simple reason behind this: game balance. The designers of D&D and Pathfinder have in mind the events that they host, not all the bazillion posibilities of homebrew gaming, in which campaigns may last REALLY long and where battle may not be as common or often. And, is fine: it is our duty to take care of that aspect.

Based on the Retraining option presented on Ultimate Campaign from Pathfinder, I present here an alternative system that will allow characters of all classes to make use of their spare time to not only replace stuff they do not like but to also ADD new stuff that they would not, otherwise, gain through their normal class progressions as a means to satisfy the need for that special class feature or feat you are looking for without compromising too much your entire character concept by taking too many disparate classes only to get the abilities you want. Of course this, by no mean, replaces a normal character progression and imposses high costs and a palpable limitation, thought it might help to tweak greatly a character concept in order to take it one step closer to it's original idea.

Pretty much like in the Retraining rules, Training costs a general amount of GP equal to 30 x (Character Lvl. x3) x the amount of days the training takes. While the amount can be paid on a day by day basis, interruption of the training ruins the entire attempt. A new attempt can be made after a number of days equal to half the training time rounded down. Certain trainings require the assistance of another character and, while it is possible to train a few of such things without assistance, the required time is doubled, but not the GP cost. Additionally, some abilities consume a Class Feature Slot, of which each class level has 7. Most classes start with several class features listed on their 1st. Level chart, thus meaning they have less free slots as each new External Class Feature gained consumes a Class Feature Slot. Once all slots are occupied, no new Class Features can be learned on that level and a character CANNOT trade a Class Feature of it's main class for an External Class Feature. If you gain a level on a class that grants you a Class Feature you have as an External Class Feature, the new version replaces the older and that Class Feature Slot is freed. Something similar happens with Feats, where each character has 4 Feat Slots per level and the same rules for External Class Features apply as required.

Ability Score Increase.- Increasing an Ability Score takes 15 days of Downtime. Success grants an increase of +1 in one Ability Score of your choice, but you can only gain this benefit once for every 4 HD you have. This training does not count towards the Class Feature Slot limit.

External Class Feature.- Gaining a Class Feature that doesn't belongs to your class progression takes an amount of time equal to 15 days x the level in which the Class Feature is originally gained on it's original class. In order to learn the Class Feature, you must train with a character at least 4 class levels above the level in which the Class Feature is gained and you must have the character level in which the Class Feature is gained on it's original class. Class Features gained in this way consume 1 Class Feature Slot and have only 50% of their original power, duration, and usefullness if they belong to a class with which your main class have synergy (as stated on the table Retraining Synergies on Ultimate Combat), otherwise, they only have 25% of their values. Class Features gained in this way DO NOT progress with the gaining of levels as they would normally do and, in order to make them progress, you first require to "Master" them by training them further spending half of the original GP prize but the same time again for those at 50% of their value, and 3 times more for those at 25% (each new finished time gaining a respective 25% boost update). Each of these "Updates" consumes A NEW Class Feature Slot and the process must be repeated entirely the next time you want to "level up" an External Class Feature. This secondary training can be done without assistance. Class features that are "upgraded versions" of older Class Features on a class progression cannot be learned in this way: the entire chain must be respected. Additionally, if by chance, reduction or unsuittable Ability Scores, the output (be it damage, time, area, etc) of a particular External Class Feature is less than 1, you failed to learn the External Class Feature and both the time and GP is wasted.

Additional Feats.- Gaining an Additional Feat takes an amount of time equal to 15 days and an extra amount of days if the Feat requirements would make it only possible at a certain character level, in which case would be 15 x (the required level x 3). In order to learn the Feat, you must train with a character that possess the Feat in question and you must fullfill all the requirements specified for the Feat. In the case the Feat requirements demand a character to belong to a certain class, you can train the Feat as an External Class Feature instead, applying the rules of External Class Feature training and, thus, consuming Class Feature Slots. A character posses 4 Feat slots per level and cannot train more than this, specially if some Class Feature (like the Fighter Bonus Feat) has already taken some of those slots (as in the case of a Human Fighter, for example, which would receive 3 feats and, thus, could only train 1 additional feat).

Additional Skill Ranks.- Gaining Additional Skill Ranks takes 15 days and you gain an amount of ranks equal to your INT Bonus (minimum of 1). You can also turn any Skill into a Class Skill by spending 1 Class Feature Slot per Class Skill converted and you can only do it once per level.

Other Training Options & Notes.- It is possible to replace the GP cost of training through other types of capital by paying the equivalent costs as stated on Ultimate Campaign. Also, it is possible to train any sort of Feat or Class Feature without the assistance of another character by using a written guide or source, making the process only 50% longer instead of double the time. Nevertheless, it is impossible to train any Class Feature or Feat that would require levels BEYOND Lvl. 5 of any class without the assistance of a character of the appropiate class and level.

The Writer.

Homebrew Rules & Expansions: Research Points (for Pathfinder's Downtime System)

The Writer

While the Downtime system covers a wide variety of sittuations on Pathfinder, it covers very loosely the aspect of academic research. This is no wonder: TRPGs are not designed with the idea of players wanting to play characters that will spend days, months, or years clustered in labs, libraries, or schools but instead exploring a dangerously fantastic world, thus putting more enphasis on the combat aspect and less on calmer or more modest ways of realization. Nevertheless, nothing says a character that stays home unraveling the mysteries of the universe can't be as epic or glorious as their more actively adventuring counterparts. After all, many great minds would agree that the quest for knowledge on itself is one of the greatest kinds of adventure on it's own.

I present here an optional add-on to the Downtime sub-system that not only addresses this kind of intend from players slightly more bent towards the academic while granting them also a means to demonstrate that there are also ways to progress as a player without the need of combat or other violent sittuations which can bring a non-dissruptive and interesting new flavoring to any campaign.

Research Points (RP).- In this variant of the Downtime sub-system, we add Research Points as an special new type of capital. However, different from GP, Goods, Influence, Labor and Magic, Research Points have some extra limitations as to how you can use them and how much you can have. A character earns Research Points by making use of the Research Facts & Lore downtime activity, which normally grants the character 3 chances at a particular Knowledge skill check, granting instead 1 chance only. Nevertheless, pretty much like in the case of the other types of capital, the result yields an amount of RP based on the table Skilled Capital Earnings from Ultimate Campaign (this means that all results are divided by 10 and rounded down to the nearest whole number or 0 if not possible). The Earned Cost of 1 RP is 20GP and, thus, it's purchase cost it's 40GP, representing all the expenses in loaning books, entire libraries for days, language translation services, and perhaps even paying for research facilities and the proper materials for the experiments or specimens. (Optionally, certain campaigns or sittuations may make the Earned Cost of RP 0, implying sittuations like a deep study of material at an school library open to all students for free, or a research that is sponsored by a wealthy patron unconcerned about money expenditures; in the other hand, small research like the one for which the original Research Facts & Lore was designed is better handled with the original rules).

Being a mental type of capital, however, Research Points cannot be kept indefinetely without a proper storage for long (after all, ideas are quite volatile, specially ingenious ones). As such, after 1 month of research, the characters requires to make an Artistry (Scientific Papers) check in order to make proper notes of all the progress so far or loss it's current RP at a ratio of 8 RP per day. Be it handwritten annotations and diagrams or printed notes, the result in the check determines how much RP is lost (or saved) in the process as follows:

* 0 - 9 (Hasted Writings).- Usually done by someone lacking talent with words, organization, or as a quick desperate remainder of some sort, hasted writings are more hints and clues than an actual means to store information. Unless a DC 20 Linguistics check is made, all RP is lost and the work is unusable. However, upon success, 25% of the original RP might be reconstructed with a minimum of 1.
* 10 - 14 (Rough Draft).- A collection of notes and snippets that serve to stimulate the memory of the original researcher but usually fail to convey a solid idea to others, making it complex for others to work it with. There is a 50% RP loss with a minimum of 1 RP. 
* 15 - 19 (Summary).- While not putting the minute detail of the reseach, the general idea is decently preserved. There is a 25% RP loss with a minimum of 1 RP. 
* 20 (Perfect).- The character has managed to perfectly convey all his ideas with proper wording and diagrams. There is no RP loss and, additionally, for every 5 points by which the DC is exceeded, the work earns an extra 1 RP as either inspiration struck the writer or new developements shown themselves upon putting the research into written form. 

In addition to the time constrain, characters are limited in the amount of RP they can hold at a time since most normal minds lack a perfect memory or an unlimited data capacity. A character can only hold an amount of RP equal to it's INT score, and any additional attempt to gain further RP is wasted until invested or noted down as explained above. To note down the RP with the described Artistry (Scientific Papers) check consumes 1 hour per RP noted down and, thus, only a max of 8 RP can be successfully saved on a single day by a single character.

Making Use Of Research Points, Goals, and Breakthroughs

The purpose of the Research Point Add-On to the Downtime Sub-system is to make a simplified emulation of how actual developement of new ideas and discoveries work and come to be. As such, a character making use of this system is, most likely, aiming to achieve something novel on a particular field of lore or science or, perhaps, become really well documented or sagely on a particular topic. For the sake of simplicity, such ends are grouped in 2 categories: Goals and Breakthroughs. Granted how the earning of RP is not as "readily" as the other types of capital, achieving Goals and Breakthoughs is not an easy task and, thus, they are meant to grant the character who is successfull in achieving them an amount of XP appropiate to the challenge at hand. In the next section, we explain the new terms in detail as well as a simple means to measure how much XP a succesfull character receives upon completion of his academical achievements.

Goals.- A Goal is not a real discovery or something new, but instead a lore related achievement the character is looking to attain. Good examples of Goals would be getting to understand in detail how draconic physiology works, a detailed relation of the stellar pathways in the nightsky, deep understanding of the minute details in the history of a country, all the available escape routes of a castle both known and secret, etc. Each specific Goal has an RP cost that must be paid in order to be achieved. The cost criteria of this RP is left to the GM to decide depending on the specific sittuation (as a comprensive list would be mostly impossible), but most Goals hover over a threshold spanning from 1 RP to 30 RP, though higher requirements are possible. In addition to the XP reward received upon achievement, any Goal which RP cost is 20 or higher bestows a permanent +1 Lore Bonus on 1 Knowledge Skill related to the particular Goal in question and an extra +1 for each 10 RP the cost goes beyond 20.

Breakthroughs.- A Breakthrough is any kind of discovery or unveiling of previously unknown lore that might actually lead to an actual change of some sort in a specific branch of knowledge, the developement of new inventions, or even changes on the way society thinks or does things. While Goals are, generally, detailed recollections of knowledge readily available to any person or group dedicating enough time and effort to achieve, a Breakthrough is the genesis of new things, be them something as humble as practical answers never found before to common problems or something as majestic as discoveries that might shake the foundations of society, history, medicine, filosophy, science, etc. Pretty much like with Goals, Breakthroughs have an RP cost and the criteria, once again, is left to the GM. However, granted the possible magnitude of this discoveries, Breakthroughs tend to have far higher RP costs, spanning from 35 RP to 145 RP. It is possible that Breakthroughs with higher RP requirements exist, but they would be QUITE rare and subject to such mind boggling elucubrations as to make them the stuff of Mythic Campaigns. It must be noted, thought that, while the seed of something new, a Breakthrough is NOT a new invention per sé, but rather the THEORY behind it and, possibly, the plans or needed steps in order to achieve such an invention, achievement, change, technique, technology, etc. As such, the bonuses, powers, abilities, or benefits a particular new invention might bring depend on the finished invention per sé and not in the Breakthrough. However, aside of making the posibility of something new plausible, every achieved Breakthrough grants the character a permanent +5 Insight Bonus on the relevant skill used to bring to reality and/or practice the actual theory developed on the Breakthrough.

Research.- A Research is the process by which a character (or group of characters) adquires and invests RP in order to achieve a number of Goals and/or Breakthroughs as well as all the information and things related to this particular quest. Many high profile Researchs may require the association of several characters given the limitations on RP storage a character has and, while it would be prefered, it is not necesary for only one Research to be conducted at a time but the RP gained should be noted separately for each Breakthrough or Goal pursued. This, however, tends to slow down the progress towards the completion of a Research as the RP capacity limit of a character remains the same, regardless of how many different Researches he might be involved at the same time. For example, if Niireme'a had an INT score of 18 and was involved in 2 different Researches, her total RP pool IS 18: if she decides to have 10 RP of one Research and 8 RP of the other is up to her but she can't exceed her current 18. In addition, some Researchs require SPECIFIC facilities, conditions and/or materials that cannot be satisfied merely with the abstract Research Point system (aimed at investigations where the materials or means aren't too exotic or too difficult to acquire) and such might be the subject of complete side-quests or even "side-campaigns". Finally, as a Research is, in general lines, a quest on itself that might be as demanding (and, sometimes, as dangerous, too) as any other kind of adventure, their completion grants the player characters involved a measure of XP based on the CR of the Research which, on itself, is based on the amount of RP the particular Goals or Breakthroughs demands as follows: 1 RP = CR 1/8, 5 RP = CR 1/6, 10 RP = CR 1/4, 15 RP = CR 1/3, 20 RP = CR 1/2, 25 RP = CR 1, 30 RP = CR 2, 35 RP = CR 3, etc, etc, etc. As such, upon the resolution of a Research, the involved characters are awarded the sum of all the XP of each individual Goal and Breakthrough and an extra amount of XP equal to double the amount earned for a battle against a CR equal to the involved characters' APL.

Wealth.- As an additional bonus, some GMs may allow characters to be able to contemplate the idea of earning a living through researching. While it is said that fantasy endures all, the idea of a "scientist" in the sense we understand in modern times is considerably outlandish in classical medieval fantasy where such a place was held by magic and religion, making it difficult and relatively unappealing the idea of becomming a scientist as a means of living in settings of that kind. As such, on settings like that, is far more logical for a character to represent remunerated academical work through the use of the earning of capital with a Knowledge skill as stated in the regular rules for earning capital. In the other hand, is completely plausible that the characters want to sell the results of their hard work to an appropiate customer (be it a kingdom, organization, academy, wealthy client, etc.), and this works pretty much as if wanting to sell a magic item on the market. However, selling information or intellectual work is not as easy as putting a new stall on the market and selling your wares and getting to find the right customer can be tricky and might require the use of the Contacts sub-system found on Ultimate Campaign. Finally, in order to put a prize to the characters' work, simply add the CR of all the component Goals and Breakthroughs and make an Average Challenge Rating. Compare this number to the APL number in the table Treasure Values Per Encounter and give the Research a prize in GP based on the Slow column. It might be the case that the ACR is a number 1 or more steps away from the actual APL involved in the Research so, in such case, adjust the GP value accordingly up to 1 step below or 4 steps ahead as it would be if rewarding the party for an encounter steps ahead or below their APL. This final GP result should be the Research's base prize on the market and, thus, the starting offer the characters should make to their patrons. Keep in mind, however that, different from a magic item, you CANNOT sell the same Research to the same customer twice and, even if selling it to a new customer, there is a 20% chance that the Research will decrease it's GP base value in a 25% as information spreads quickly and a secret or new discovery sold rarely remains "fresh" and lucrative for long. 

The Writer.

Hidden Face - Other Kins At The Veil

The Writer

A bunch of other well known races dwell on The Veil, striving for survival with differing levels of superiority. Most of these work perfectly with the default set of rules granted by the Pathfinder RPG products, thought a few may require specific campaign traits and tweaks in order to suit more properly in this particular setting.

Humans

Argueably the masters of Threa in the past, humans are little more than a resource in the grimm present of the world. Ever abundant, humans dwell in several parts of The Veil, but only on The Solar Desert Of Narmok they can dwell in freedom. Thought one would argue that surviving underground while being constantly hunted down by gigantic menaces can hardly be called "freedom". Most "civilized" humans dwell in the cities of the damned, either as workforce, servants or, worst even, blood cattle for the vampire lords to feast upon. At the scar of the world, humans are even used as currency among devils, as their souls fuel many of their devices and unholy powers, while demons are more interested in using them to bolster their numbers. Some free human communities hold dealings with the alghul, but most find the hunger folk unsettling. By the same token, most humans avoid building settlements too much to the south, lest they fall pray of the machine raids marching from Arbahn, which seek humans to turn them into gavra workforce. As such, humans do anything they can to keep the gavra away, both fearfull they may be overtly working for the machines to get more raw material, or simply disgusted by being remainded of what the machines make of man. While most humans are both scared and fascinated by the deerath, the singing haunts usually avoid them as their meat has turned a highly prized asset on human markets.

There is little record in the regards of the human culture of the past in Threa, but most free humans now revere a femenine divinity they call Anodel, The Ascending Child. Curiously enough, the human mythology states that Anodel is not the creator of humanity or Threa but the daughter of an elder divine entity and pseudo-historical figure remembered as Asoey Worgbane. According to the legend, Asoey took on the unlikely mortal form of a human girl to battle head on the demonic infestation on the world scar, allowing herself to be captured in order to seize the power of The Abyss for herself to battle fire with fire. However, as Asoey saw her battle was unlikely to end soon, she bestowed the spark of divinity upon her daughter, Anodel, and entrusted her with the task of humanity's survival until her return from The Abyss, day in which she will cleanse the world from all darkness. It remains a mistery of faith who the father of Anodel was, if it ever existed, as there is little surviving proof of the historical reality of Asoey Worgbane, whose myth originated around 1000 years ago. In the other hand, some scholars are inclined to think Asoey was but the lessermost divinity of a whole pantheon of which nothing is remembered but in decrepit writings and long lost lore, thought most clerics disscard such claims as blasphemous heresy. Anodel is commonly depicted as a human girl of shoulder lenght black hair and dark blue eyes, dressed in dark purple robes glittering with tiny silver sparkles as if she was wearing the night as her mantle, for the humans of Threa believe the night grew long in the world to protect them from their most inmediate enemies. In the other hand, Asoey Worgbane is depicted as a human female warrior with a fiery reddish blonde mane and golden eyes, clad from head to toes in a black fullplate of demonic appearance (sometimes even depicted as ablaze in hellfire), with a masterwork greatsword of angelic motiffs in one hand and the other enveloved in crackling eldtrich fire, representing her taming of the demonic arkane powers. Because of this, most human arkane delvers pray to Asoey in hope the battling goddess will help them mastering the demonic powers of magecraft without being consumed by them but, as arkane power is associated with demons and their ways, it's study is largely disscouraged. Some scholars of the faith associate Asoey with the sun, saying it now brings misery upon men because she is no longer wielding control over it as it was the case in the long lost past.

Svetocher

As the vampire lords do as they please with their human vassals in their cities, dhampirs are far more common than what one would guess, specially on the cities of Zomer and Sperches, which are the closest to the human settlements on Narmok. In the beginning, dhampirs were merely the result of the whims of bored vampire lords seeking to fill the voyd of their solitude with the experience of parenting. Nevertheless, as time passed and the human stock grew, the vampire nobles saw the wisdom in having a faction of mixed heritage under their service, for their insights granted them a better understanding and control of the cattle they intended to keep indefinetely. As such, most dhampirs enjoy lesser nobiliary titles that entrust them with direct power over the human population, acting both as overseers and enforcers of the law under the command of their lords. However, as time has passed, many dhampirs have grown fonder of humans than they are of their undead sires and it hasn't been unheard for dhampirs to do their best to lessen the cruelty of the damned over the humans under their power. Technically all dhampirs on Threa are of the svetocher kind as they are all descended from the moroi kin. If there were other vampire lineages in the past, it is largely unknown, and the vampire lords themselves remain silent on the matter.

As law enforcers and defenders of the cities of the damned, dhampirs are constantly facing the threat of the alghul and their raids, so both races have a long history of enmity since their inception. Dhampir feel a distant kinship with the gavra, as they see on their stitched faces and missmatched parts a sort of disstorted mirror visage of their own mixed heritage, specially when they ponder on "the real visage" of their undead sires. Naturaly attracted to beauty, the dhampir find the deerath's enigmatic charm almost irresistible, a peek into the posibility of a brighter world of beauty and many of the less ethic kind have been known to capture the singing haunts to keep them as personal pets on their manors or as gifts to their undead sires, who value the rarity of such presents. Accostumed to enforce the law of their sires, dhampirs get along well with the hellspawn, who seem all too eager to partake in the political intrigue of the vampire kind. In the other hand, pitborn make poor company for an svetocher, as both find the other aggresively competing for the spotlight and leathership in whatever social sittuation they might find the other.

Dhampirs aren't particularly inclined to religion, but some follow the creed of their undying sires, who venerate Adiastebh, The Breaching Tide. Also known as "She-Who-Cannot-Be-Denied", Adiastebh is also praised by thieves and those aiming to attain forbbiden things, for she personifies the will, might, and cunning to get anything that is desired without mattering the consecuences or the means. Apocrypha found on the secret libraries from the southern city of Otomne suggest that Asoey Worgbane enlisted the help of Adiastebh to steal the secrets of arkane lore from the pits of The Abyss but, upon fulfilling her part of the agreement, The Breaching Tide betrayed Asoey, taking away her godhood while delivering her to the demon lords. Her ascension as a vampire goddess, thus, was key to the rise of the vampire kin as the sovereigns of The Veil and their "neutrality" in the Blood War. While evident that this account of events contradicts what most human devouts hold as true regarding the mythos of Asoey Worgbane, one could argue that the records held by vampires have a higher chance of being more accurate considering the immortality of the damned. Nevertheless, it is also completely feasible that such an account was a mere hoax designed by the vampires to demoralize the human cattle under their control and over-justify their superiority and right to subjugate as part of "divine decree", considering how intrinsecal faith seems to be on mortals. Adiastebh is usually depicted as a humanoid woman, barely an adult, with silky black hair and crimson eyes colored pitch black with eyeshadow all around them. Scanthly dressed in gothic attires of black leather, two bat wings sprout from her back as white fangs peek through her black colored lips while she licks the blood on them.

Hellspawn

Even taking into consideration the fact that Baator has stablished a firm foothold on Threa as a means to battle the demonic incurssion on the planet, the abundance of hellspawn (tieflings descended from devils) is unusually high, specially when one takes in account the fact that humans are not as common or populous as in other words, throwing the "mere chance" variable out of the window. However, this doesn't means in any ways that the devils of inhabiting The Veil are any less brutal, sadistic or evil than they are on The Nine Hells Of Baator. It doesn't means, either, that humans in Threa are more open minded and accepting for like entertaining and enduring such acursed lovers as devils could be. In fact, the truth is far more practical, cruel and harsh in nature, befitting of the devilkin. Having made a permanent hellish outpost on a radius around the breach as a sort of containment wall, the devils find themselves ill suited to bring all the necesary divine power to fuel their unholy abilities and machinery. As such, they are in dire need to gain souls far faster than what their numbers can handle while also battling wave after wave of demonic invaders. It was with this purpose that hundreds of humans have been captured, lured, or "bought" from the vampire lords to act as breeding stock, in order to create a boom population of hellspawn tieflings. The hellspawn chilren are, thus, brutally and strictly raised with only 3 possible fates: soul corruption, grunt workforce, or cannon fodder. It is, in fact, a very profitable business when you take in account the soul economy of hell as, being raised on depravity but still posessing a soul, hellspawn are almost damned since birth, so if they outlive their usefullness, devils can already count with the energy of their souls once they loose them.

In contrast with the well known unpredictability of tiefling heritage on other worlds, hellspawn from Threa are far more easily distinguishable from their demonic counterparts as, tracing back their bloodline to the phistophilus, most of them posses crimson red skin, horns, pointed ears, and black eyes with glowing irises. Some even possess tails, and the horn shapes vary by individual, but the other traits are almost universal among them, which makes them recognizable to others and to each other. This "common look" has given a usually inarticulated race a sense of kinship that is way too rare among the fiendish blooded of other worlds, as well as a sort of status, as hellspawn found on other lands are expected to be educated and well learned beyond the norm, since it is the most logical assumption that a hellspawn that isn't toiling for it's daily chunk of bread or going in the frontline is definetely up to gather souls through corruption, a task that requires a good deal of witts, skill, and knowledge.

Hellspawn find the gavra dissmaying as their cravings and obessions could make them the perfect clients for soul transaction, if they were to have any sort of soul to trade, but they still value them as allies and professional companions, since having someone that keeps his word by free will is a rare luxury in Threa. They get along superbly with dhampirs as their lots in life are dramatically similar with both being trained since earliest youth in courtly intrigue and the study of humanoid psyche. Also, both share a general despise for the alghul, as the hellspawn find their feral and chaotic nature way too similar to the foul brood of The Abyss they are taught to hate since birth. In the other hand, they find themselves perplexed before the deerath, as most hellspawn can't wrap up their minds around the idea of a race so inclined to chaos and yet so peacefull, which makes many to falter in their intrinsecal devotion of law. They have an strained relation with the pitborn as, half-descended from the eternal enemies of their sires, they know what is to be in between two worlds but can't bring themselves to trust a being spawned from chaos. In most cases, hellspawn look at humans with a blend of pitty and envy, for they know they are nothing but the prey and cattle of the higher powers vying for control over Threa but, at least, their souls aren't damned to begin with, which grants them a tiny twinkle of freedom and hope that a hellspawn would treasure far more than it's own life if she could get such a rare chance.

Encouraged to think that they are damned from their very inception, most hellspawn turn their devotion to Asmodeus, Lord Of The Nine Hells Of Baator, in the hope that, by pleasing the unquestioned ruler of hell or their closest lieutenants, they might scape the torment of eternity by being quickly promoted from lemures into the hellish hierarchy of greater devils. This drives most hellspawn to push themselves to excel in whatever task they find themselves, trying to outdo their peers and show that they deserve to scape their fate as mere fuel on the Blood War. Nevertheless, a few truely daring hellspawn rebel against the unholy law of Erediss, the second of five devil settlements that exist on Threa around the planar breach, seeking to regain the control they never had over the ultimate fate of their souls. As would be expected, the words of a hellspawn are weighed with care, and while people of their word, nobody trusts their intentions, since their fame as soul bargainers follows them around wherever they go.

Pitborn

Very much like their devilish counterparts, the tiefling tainted by the chaos of The Abyss are far more common in Threa than what one would expect, thought their reasons owe nothing to evil machination or masterfull planning. In fact, the genesis of the pitborn tieflings in Threa owes itself more to chaos than to any other circunstance, which is ironicaly befitting to them. As The Midnight Gate began to tear apart Threa, the demonic taint began to spread through air, water, and soil alike, and those who drew nourishment from such taint fell ill to unnatural maladies. Yet, not all those who drank fouled waters or ate the meat of tainted beasts died. Some survived in a weakened state, ignorant that the corruption they had intaken would manifest in the generations to come. Before priests could device any sort of reasonable answer to blame such an event on the sinfull nature of their followers, a miriad of human parents found themselves bearing the burden of a family that now had the taint of The Abyss on their genealogy, even if none of their members had ever crossed their ways with the acursed tempters. Despised, shunned, and, more than anything, feared, most pitborn fled from their former homes to find a place where they could dwell, a place which would not judge them without a crime, but none above ground or below it on Threa would suffer the chaos tiefling and the taint on their blood, so they pay heed to the call of The Abyss and returned to the bowels of the world. There, in brown earth putrid with corruption, alight with ragefull flames of palid yellow, and washed with bitter rivers of tears, the pitborn found a place they could turn into an abode. Thus The Halls Of Grime came to be, carved in the living rock of the breach, as those who beared the spirit of The Abyss seeked to scape the war in between their hunters and the realm of chaotic intend that had brought them forth. There they dwell, leading lives of filth, misery and violence, much in the likeness to the monsters that come forth each times the clock strikes twelve in the night, drawing sustenance from the ever present gore that rains down on the slopes amid the chasm like starving flies at the disscard pile of a butchery, indulging in acts of depravity and corruption for which words grow too small and soft, for all the delights of goodness have been unfairly denied to them.

Once again, as the origin of these particular strand of pitborn is of a far more human stock, they are far more distinguishable from their hellspawn counterparts, appearing almost human with noticeable, yet slight, demonic traits, such as horns, slit pupil eyes, tails, or even hoofs for feet in some cases. However, still bearing the taint of chaos on them, most pitborn possess some minor or mayor deformity that marres their simetry, either as slight as an odd colored birthmark or additional sets of useless and half-formed appendages. This makes them easy prey for the devil patrols, always on the look for infiltrators among the human ranks or even those attempting to pass as hellspawn.

Pitborn see the gavra as charming, as their missmatched visages pleases the chaotic aesthetics of The Abyss, but find their unwillingness to "let go" constraining and stagnant to their chaotic free selves, so they tend to get along well for a time. In the other hand, pitborn have much in common with the alghul, and both can easily understand the sittuation of the other, as both have been forced by circumstance to dwell among dirt and filth while feeding upon that which anybody else would dare touching. Nevertheless, this similarities makes them natural rivals for survival and territory as well, so the skirmishes between pitborn and alghul are common in the depths of the earth whenever any of both attempt to expand beyond their borders. The deerath are gazed upon with a deep sense of envy and puzzling, for their perfect simmetry and free chance to dwell in utter peace and freedom, despite the chaos inherent to them, is what a pitborn craves the most but knows that can't be attained. They, however, despise how the singing haunts seem so unwilling to defend what they have in a more aggresive way and tend to equate their contemplativeness to cowardice. The relation in between the dhampir and the pitborn would be quite good, as the dhampir understand too well what is to be between two worlds, but most pitborn despise the svetocher nobleborn haughtyness as a sign that they do not know what is to struggle for survival and, thus, do not acknowledge their authority by any mean, often competing against them for the spotlight in whatever sittuation they are, trying to one-up them and prove that it is personal might (be it of character, physical power, magical skill, lore, or even all them together) which grants the true right to have the fate of others in your hands instead of lousy invested titles. The relation with their devilish counterparts, the hellspawn, is complicated as the pitborn are aware they are, essentially, the same, yet regard them as little if any different from devils at large, thus seeing them with well earned suspicion, knowing that every deal struck with one of the hellspawn can become an eternity of damnation. Perhaps the best company a pitborn can find is with the ever lonely haglings, for their primeval bond with the bygone natural world and the realms of confusion before time strikes to them as very similar to their own blood link to the ever shifting chaos of The Abyss.

With The Abyss merely "downstairs", most pitborn have a rather undoubting faith on the power of the demon lords, and many have become popular choices of devotion for their kin. Graz'zt, The Dark Prince, is a very popular choice among those pitborn who seek to excert domination over their brethren as well as those who desire to strike back at their hellish rivals from above. Malcanthet, Queen Of The Succubi, sees worship among those pitborn who seek to leave behind The Halls Of Grime and earn a place amid the decadent lords from the cities of the damned, more than eager to flaunt their superiority before the haughty svetochers. Finally, Orcus is favored by those who seek to truely rebel on their demonic heritage and exert domination through sheer power and brutality and, while some scholars would argue that Demogorgon, The Prince Of Demons, is a far more powerfull choice, few find any appeal in the borderline insane demon lord which seems more a beast than a thinking sentience.

Hagling

Ever lonesome and ever wandering, the scions of the hags and humanoid races, haglings (oftenly named changelings, causing much confussion with those who trace their ancestry to the shape-shifting dopplegangers) were relatively common on other times, when humans weren't so afraid of the forests of the world, but such times are long gone now. With the eldalie extinguished, and the green realms twisted in vicious gardens of spiked brambles and fetid bogs of toxic fumes, the hags have grown many, perhaps even way too many for their own liking, thus rendering the need for newcommers scarce and, thus, haglings aren't sired with the same fecundity of the past, nor it is as easy to lure the happless traveler into the forest as it used to be. Because of these reasons, haglings have become rather rare. Uncalled by their hag mothers upon reaching maturity and hunted down by their human foster parents, most haglings flee the outskirts of humanoid settlements to lead lonesome existances, usually at the doorstep of their mothers' domains, while others, more resolved to carve a place of their own, take residence at the brass city of Erediss, persuing careers of corruption and guile that, sometimes, rival the best hellspawn. Others, of a more intellectual inclination, seek to explore the secrets in the intrinsecal order of the universe, working to tame the latent arkane powers on their blood, applying to the schools in the lazurite city of Kathodrel. Ultimately, those desperate enough seek shelter in The Halls Of Grime along the pitborn, for the demon blooded tieflings brimm with stolen secrets of arkane lore that date back to the days of The First World and, perhaps, even more ancient things.

Haglings feel they can sympathize with the gavra feelings of lost origin and their search for truth, but can't help finding their lack of a tie to the natural world somewhat distasteful. Haglings and alghul would get along well if it wasn't for the fact that many haglings desperatelly avoid anything that would remind them in what they may become one day and, while the hunger folk do not resemble the hate crones in looks, the alghul share a good measure of the savagery which has made the hags infamous. Both deeply tied to the most primordial aspects of the nature, haglings and deerath enjoy the company of the other dearly, even if they cannot fully understand each other due the inmense mental gap in between both. Svetochers find that the abilities of the hagling put her slightly above the common human cattle, but they remain way too uncouth and parasitic to be considered more than unrefined country folk that try to torpidly imitate their graces through forgotten fey arts. Conversely, the haglings consider the svetocher as haughty beyond the limits of their beauty, prefering to deal as little as they can with them. In dire contrast, and despite their tendency to chaos, haglings and hellspawn can work wonders when teaming together for both races are fond of exploring and exploiting the depths of humanoid psychology for their own ends and associations in between both are common. However, it is alongside the pitborn that the haglings seem to find true twin souls, as both have endured a similar persecution through life and both cannot help but to delight upon the primal surges of power found in ritualistic magic and chaotic power of eras past.

Haglings do not have any sort of true religion as most seek not to turn into hags and, thus, do not worship hag deities. Nevertheless, most of them revere nature in the likeness of the deerath and as witchcraft is ever so common on their numbers, many instead revere the strange entities from beyond that are collectively known as Fal'Cie which seem to bestow their powers upon them, said to dwell in the rift between worlds, thought none in Threa had ever wittnessed or given accounts of such primordial beings if ever out yellowed scrolls and crumpled tidbits of lost books which are better left in such an state.

- The Writer.

Hidden Face - The Deerath, Haunting Song Of The Dusken Realms

The Writer

There was a time in which the western shores of The Veil weren't a synonym of death for the mind, and in which the realms below were as blue and clear as the skies in the sun wastes where now the man is little more than an ant striving for another day of survival. It was in the days in which the scar of the world appeared that, desperate, life searched for shelter and haven wherever it was possible to find it. Many perished before realizing that there was no hope left upon the earth or below it, and that the only place untouched by the poison of The Abyss laid deep, under the shifting tides. It was said that, in the beginnings beyond recall, life came from the unseen depths of the sea, and now, life was comming back home to find death in a cold embrace, amid uncertain dreams of hope forever lost and the rotten crafts of daring men who wanted to touch the horizon. The days when the world scar came to be were troubled and very few dare to remember it's exact detail, lest they remember all what was lost and grieve blood as tears would not suffice, so an account of the lives that were lost at the seas lingers not in any willing memory. However, awash with blood and carcass alike, the tide turned dark as wine, and as misty clouds of twilight orange began to form in the once limpid waters, many began to believe that the seas had claimed enough souls to become a world of it's own in a dark likeness to the once vibrant world of above, a haven for those willing to pay the sea with their lives, upon questioning too much the meaning of existance in the tortuous world above. It was since then that the dark tides of the western shores earned the name of The Seas Of Doubt, and most sane folk would not dare passing on those waters, for many claim them to be cursed with the longing of an emerging world that one day may becamo the new Threa, once the old world finaly dies.

Despite the misery and horrors Threa have wittnessed in the world above the waves, most wise sages and cautious pursuers of truth disscounted such claims as born out from the fear of men, intimidated by the dark and calm vastness of the red tides. Enboldened by the confidence of reason, some daring souls attempted once again to navigate the timeless waves of The Sea Of Doubt, only to find out that something dwelt in the murky realms below the water. Time and again, sailors despaired upon sighting these "colored lights" under the water, circling them like sharks, and fear clutched their souls as they felt eyes that peered through flesh, bone, brain, faith, and lie into their hearts and thoughts, followed by a soft humming, sad as a lament for the world that is no more. So man fled back to his shores and, behind him, the deerath watched with the curiosity of a child, for perhaps maddness is right and, as the world is slowly swallowed by the growing tide, the dusken realms grow to become the one and only Threa in which the voice of the Singing Haunts is the song of the world and man nothing but the dream of dolphins.

Physical Description

To glance upon a deerath is an experience that few can forget for it is a remainder that, while Threa is on the throes of it's death, beauty still lingers amid foulness as a candle of faerie fire in the heart of the night. With shapes that seem sculpted with the lust that burns in the craving carress of a succubus and the forbbiden thoughts of an angel, deeraths look as humanoid as the desire of men can be shaped, but their forms bear no hair of any kind, a mane of lazy tentacles crowning their heads instead, slowly writhing in all directions as if the yearning to touch was too strong to be overcame, betraying a nature that stems not from bloodlines dwelling upon the dry earth. Bearing the otherwordly aesthetics of the wild and colorfull gardens of the dusken realms, a deerath's skin both shines like the polished scales of a tropical fish and glistens like the terse skin of the jungle frogs in unique shades that range from the darkest brown to a yellow so golden as to rival the sun, for the singing haunts are capable to set their bodies alight, as if they fancied themselves the stars of the evernight in the depths of the sea, talking to each other in words of color and sentences of pattern as their airy voices are to be heard only above the waters.

Since the form of the singing haunts was revealed, scholars of all kinds ponder, trying to guess the intend behind such a masterpiece, for it is hard to believe it's authory to belong to mere chance and freak accident. That a being who can trace back it's ancestry to the humble seabed flowers and spineless crabs bears such a dire and perfect semblance of humanity is beyond coincidence, no matter if it's forearms and other parts are still covered in thick plaques in the likeness of lobsters and shrimps. As no answer can satisfy the intellectual minds in this matter, many have turned their thought to the stars from above and wondered that, if in the unchronicled past, visitors from the black tapestry had came, they could have left a dormant seed of alien beauty on the bosom of Threa, which might have silently awakened, as the world is about to end. If this theory is true, it would explain their suspicious fecundity, as gender is naught but a choice that can be undone by mere will in matter of hours, almost as if designed to spread upon the barrenness of a dying world, saving it from it's impending solitude.

Unearthly beauty, reach for a world untouched by the surface evils, eyes of many colors that can pierce the darkness of the depths, unfettered by the constrains of mortal duality, voices that can move the hardest hearts, numbers growing into legions at every passing day, minds that can peer into the hearts of other folk; the deerath seem perfect, earning the right to inherit Threa as the other mortal races dwindle into extinction if not for the fact that, despite being able to breath air, the land won't suffer them for long and, after a few days at best, a deerath needs to return to the watery depths from whence it came. Such is the pact it holds with the sea, a promise it needs to keep upon risking a death of dry pain and coughing despair, for gills still line their necks and sides reminding them where they belong.

Society

There is no verifiable account as what refers to the thoughts and truths regarding the deerath but the few cryptic words they had spared to the broader mortal minds and the ramblings of the mentally derranged, who claim such preposterous things as to have been dragged underwater, into The Dusken Realms, beholding inhuman wonders at the depths. Quite sociable, the deerath are good natured but cryptic, thought this doesn't stems from a sense of superiority or haughtyness, for it is their rather alien mindset which is to blame. Deeply emotional creatures, the singing haunts understand the world around themselves and the beings on it through the entire gamma of their feelings, weaving them as if they were chords and tunes of a grand symphony with which they convey their thoughts and musitations, bereft of shape or margin but brimming to no end with detail and color in a logical connundrum. With minds unfashioned to conceive linear thought or concrete conceptualization, the deerath have a hard time putting in the constrain of nouns and adjectives what their analogical minds intend to convey.

Given this distinct perception of reality, the concept of civilization as man understands it lacks any meaning to the singing haunts, instead embracing contemplative existances in the ever-present tense, eschewing any sort of attachment or sense of posession, instead hoarding memory and experience as their most valued treasures. As such, the deerath give a particular importance in keeping their bonds with others rejuvenating constantly, thought never to the point of smothering or attachment. In most cases, a mere acknowledgement is enough, and a common "salutation" among the singing haunts would roughly be translated as "Remember me, for I remember you."

Relations

Naive but not stupid, the deerath have learned, sooner than later, that the dwellers from the world above cannot be trusted. Curiously enough, it is not the ever wandering gavra or the hungry alghul which they fear, but men. For, while unlikely, now and then a deerath has been captured by humans desperate enough to commit most heinous acts and, upon them, discovering a most unthinkable truth in the body of the singing haunts: their flesh, raw and uncooked, is, perhaps, the most exquisite morsel a mortal with the human sense of taste could ever hope to experience. Some have gone as far as to attribute supernatural powers to it, to the point of saying it cures illnesses or breaks enchantments, but none of such has been proven ever. Then again, only the blackest hearts would dare willingly harming a deerath, for the detail and richness with which it can convey it's suffering to others through it's song would deter most from such terrible acts. Nevertheless, there are other sentiences in the depths of The Dusken Realms and men, while a threat above waters, it is the least of the concerns for a deerath, for it is these dwellers of the deep trenches which truely inspire fear on a race that leads a rather carefree existance.

While curious, the deerath find the gavra many contradictory emotions confusing and their obsessions saddening, while finding the alghul plain and rather boring with their hunger being a monotone noise opacating any other melody. They find themselves lost on the labyrintine machinations of hellspawn, but allured by the sensible freedom in the mind and feelings of the pitborn, thought they dim them way too dark and violent for their own peacefull taste.

Alignment & Religion

Beings of peace and contemplation, deerath find themselves leaning towards good, thought their particular mindset pushes them strongly towards chaos. However, as samplers of all sorts of emotions, deerath aren't incapable of evil and a very few have taken a likening for the unique taste of such dark emotions. Bereft of tradition or registrable culture, the deerath like any sort of faith in greater powers. Some, however, revere nature as the animating force in all things and, thus, responsible for the bliss of existance.

Adventurers

The life of deerath is one of wanderlust by nature. Nevertheless, very few deeraths venture forth beyond the limits of The Dusken Realms, for there are elder things of a far more sinister nature roaming on clearer and bluer waters. In the other hand, the accounts of those claiming to have seen vast deerath cities under the waves aren't completely untrue, as The Sea Of Doubt sitts upon the remainder of ancient cities long lost, ruins from times of greater glories and splendor, and the deerath have taken a liking for these abandoned settlements, fashioning them as their own collective homes. However, now and then, curiosity sets one particular deerath apart, which grows increasingly interested in understanding the secrets concealed in this remanents of the past, secrets which can only be unveiled, most likely, with the help of those above. One way or the other, the singing haunts are eager to explore the world above before it ceases to exist and becomes theirs, in the likeness of The Dusken Realms.

Standard Racial Traits

* Ability Score Racial Traits: While deeply attuned to their feelings and the emotions of other creatures, their bodies are designed for the ungravity of water and their alien mindsets have a hard time accomodating the ways of common sense and logic. They gain +4 Charisma, -2 Strenght and -2 Intelligence.
* Size: Deerath are Medium creatures and thus receive no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
* Type: Deerath are humanoids with the aquatic and psionic subtypes.
* Base Speed: Deerath have a base speed of 30 feet on land. As aquatic creatures, they also have a swim speed of 30ft, can move in water without making Swim checks, and always treat Swim as a class skill.
* Languages: Deerath begin play speaking Deerathian, their own visual language. Only deeraths (or creatures with the ability to change the pattern of their skins at will) can speak deerathian, thought very few creatures have the alien mindset and understanding for like actually learning to speak it fluently. Deeraths with high Intelligence scores can choose any languages they want (except secret languages, such as Druidic).

Defensive Racial Traits

* Chitin Plating: In the likeness of many creatures from the depths, the deerath possess a protective shielding on some parts of their bodies, thought mainly visible on their forearms and sheens. This shielding grants a Natural Armor bonus of +1. 

Feat & Skill Racial Traits

* Haunting Voice: Thought they cannot use their voices below the waters, deeraths are gifted singers and their songs are the stuff of many legends and myths across The Veil. They receive a +2 racial bonus on Perform (Sing) skill checks.
* Wild Talent: Latent psionic beings ready to awaken their nascent powers, deerath receive Wild Talent as a racial bonus feat.

Psionic Racial Traits

* Empathy: Once per day, a deerath can manifest Empathy as a psi-like ability with a manifester level equal to it's current hit dice.

Offense Racial Traits

* Song Of The Haunt: The unique ability that gained the deerath their nickname. Once per hour, and as an standard action, a deerath can attempt to convey the mournfull sense of loss of The Sea Of Doubt in a soft but unnatural song. Anybody who can hear the deerath must make a Will saving throw (DC 10 + 1/2 the deerath's hit dice + the deerath's Charisma modifier) or become shaken for 1d4 rounds. A target that successfully saves cannot be affected by the song of the same character for 24 hours. Creatures that are already shaken become frightened for 1d4 rounds instead. This is a sonic, mind-affecting effect.  

Senses Racial Traits

* Deepsight: Deeraths are specially adapted to the lightless depths of the oceans and, so, they can see in the dark up to 120ft. while underwater, but do not gain this benefit out of water. 

Weakness Racial Traits

* Delicious: The taste of deerath's raw flesh posses a flavor that few creatures of carnivorous diets can resist. As such, the deerath have a -2 penalty to Escape Artist skill checks and Combat Maneuvers to escape a grapple from a creature using a bite attack with the Grab ability. 
* Water Dependency: As much as they would love to wander freely on the realms above the waves, deerath are bound to the water by physiological reasons. As such, a deerath can withstand a number of days equal to 1 + Constitution Modifier without being inmmersed in water. After this time, once per day, the deerath needs to make a Fortitude save with an initial DC of 10 and a cumulative +1 per each passing day or experiment critical organ failure and die in 4d6 hours.

Other Racial Traits

* Amphibious: As amphibious creatures, deerath can breath both air and water. Nevertheless, their aquatic nature makes them dependant of water as their main habitat and they can't survive for too long in absense of such an enviroment.
* Chromapluris: Capable of changing the shape, position, and density of their skin pigments, deerath are capable of changing the colors and patterns of their skin and eyes with relative ease. As a swift action, a deerath can try to match it's skin colors with the features of the surrounding enviroment, granting him a +2 circumstance bonus in Stealth skill checks. Alternatively, a deerath can make it's body to radiate a vibrant light of any color it fancies, shedding normal light in a 20-foot radius and increasing the light level by one step for an additional 20 feet beyond that area as a torch would. A deerath can stop this effect as a free action and resume it 1d4 rounds after, sustaining it indefinetely as long as it is concious.

- The Writer.

Hidden Face - The Alghul, The Hunger Made Flesh

The Writer

It is no mistery that once, on the days when the sun wasn't feared and Elppa wasn't a place of torment, the woods of Threa were tended and cared by the eldalie, as it is the case of uncountable worlds across the night sky. However, when the world was scarred by The Abyss and nights grew longer, the restless dead came out of their unlighted domains, and the cursed lords feasted upon all life they could grasp upon the earth. The eldalie prayed to a sun they could no longer see for salvation, but most could only find solace in death as the forests of the world withered and life starved. As Threa began it's descent into the agony of death, the beasts of the field desperatelly scoured the earth in search of root or dried leaf to stave off their despair but found none on a land that grew palid with the touch of unlife, and soon the gentle became ruthless, and the tame grew wild as, desperate, nature turned to itself, and not even the green in the world was spared of such maddness.

Abandoned by a sun that would not rise upon the sky and stars that would no longer grant hope upon the nights, cast away from their withering homes now turned feral under the command of the hate crones, the eldalie fled, accepting death as their fate, entombing themselves in the dark depths of the earth along with their sorrow and the bitter taste of betrayal on the mouths. Many accepted death and embraced it, seeking to scape the maddness of the world, but some, some lingered, and their despair turned them as wild as the beasts of the world above. It was in the midst of this red insanity that The King Of The White Kingdom made himself present, stirred by the spilled blood of innocents and the consumed flesh of kinfolk. To these grim survivors, the King granted a sole gift if they were to praise him for all eternity as their sole and only god. And so he was praised, and the survivors were granted the means to turn their newfound hunger into the demise of both those who ruined their lands and who turned their backs when their need was most dire.

Since that day, the eldalie were extinguished, for even when there were many who still drew breath among them, something died forever on them as they embraced The King Of The White Kingdom as their lord and their thoughts turned only to him and to the hunger of Threa, for they could now feel it and partake on it's desire to feast. Forgotten was the bread and the wine, for the tongue grew accostumed to the taste of unspilled blood and the teeth grew to bite on flesh, and the jaws to break bones. No longer were the eyes welcoming the treacherous sun, and pleasing found them the darkness amid coffin and tomb. Threa was enters it's autumn, and as it's green expanses craved gardeners in the past, it's rotten husk now demanded hungry maggots to feast upon the carrion that walked upon it, as she was to be groomed for it's final rest. Everything that is born walks it's path towards death, and he who feasts today is to become the feast tomorrow, and none shall be allowed to break this commandment. In life or death, it is the law of nature, and the alghul, children of hunger, embody the new order of the world, for nothing is eternal and as now the dead feast upon the living, so the living ought to draw nourishment from the dead.

Physical Description

Still distantly related to the elves, the alghul retain an ever so twisted hint of their ancestral beauty in their pointed ears, lithe frames, big eyes, and fair facial features. But that's where the similarities end, for their limbs are as muscled as the ones of a feral predator, and their vertebrae protude from the back of their spine as if their bones were trying to tear open their pale skin, which ranges on shades of light green and grey. In the same way, their hands are broad but bony and elongated, with the fingertips fused to the nails with no discernible distinction, dimly reminiscent of the claws of a mole. Yet, perhaps, the most disturbing feature of an alghul lies on it's fixed manic grin, for it's broad and sharpened teeth, in the likeness of the one belonging to the predators of the sea, are designed to tear the most stout flesh and break the hardest bone, thus making ever so hard for an alghul to keep it's lips closed.

Many mistake the alghul with the ever hungry ghouls, and with good reason, for the similarities in behavior and diet are concerning. However, as ghastly as their visage may be with their feral complexions and their light hair colors, which seem the discolored manes of elder people in the doorstep of death, the alghul are pretty much alive in dire contrast with their undead contesters. Nevertheless, the similarities are not casual, and the physiology of the alghul owes it's peculiar resemblance to undeath to it's relliance on negative energy rather than positive. Some go as far as to say that the constant hunger the alghul share with their undead counterparts is a side effect of the share of negative energy that fuels their resilient forms: an everlasting taste of the entropy they now embody on Threa.

Twisted into the natural predators of those who claim themselves the rulers of the world above, the alghul no longer feel any longing for the food of men or the boons of living nature, thought they can still draw desperate sustenance from such meals if the need is dire, thought they would require five times the same amount to satiate their hunger, since what they crave is the rotten taste of undead flesh and bone, so ripe in the negative energy that now fuels their forms and, while they can derive similar sustenance from the recently slain, it is from those tainted by the curse of undeath that the alghul derive true satisfaction. The older and more rotten, the most appealing.

Society

While descended from elves, who are almost universally known for their complex traditions and refinement, the alghul retain very few hints of that past glory on their present form as a culture. Nevertheless, old habits are hard to bury for when, in ages past, their ancestors embodied the advent of life and surrounded themselves in the green of the world, the alghul have embraced their place as the heralds of death and now strive to make their abodes below the earth to praise the inescapable autumn of life in every possible expression. As such, the hunger folk have taken residence in the vast catacombs that hide under The Grey Wastes, in proximity to the cities of the cursed lords. There, the alghul have built grand cities of marble, in the shape and image of the resting places of the great lords from old, showing they do remember the higher days of their kin. Nevertheless, where the fresh green of gardens and the color of sun worshipping flowers would have been, fields of dusty orange mold and orchards of somber dark brown caps, as big as trees, take their place. The alghul find the foul smell of decay and rottenness these creatures yield as alluring as common folk would upon stumbling with the scent of a working bakery or a barrel of ripe fruit.

Despite the distant echo of glory and civility the alghul may display on their abodes, it is the hunger that which ultimately drives and motivates their actions. Stalking the outskirts of the cities of the damned in organized raids, it is the primal thrill of the hunt and unrestrained gorging what the alghul truely crave, for is in this primitive savagery that it's true nature shines. They live and thrive for the hunger, so all other things are secondary, and if short of choices, an alghul isn't above consuming their own kin if the necesity grows dire, for the hunger folk consider their own flesh a rather bland yet palatable morsel which gains a far sweeter and seasoned taste upon death. Pragmatists to the bone, an alghul is loathe to waste anything, and the death of a kinsfolk is celebrated with a feast in which the fallen is the main meal. Nothing can be more insulting to an alghul than denying it the right to feast upon the remains of a beloved comrade, for the very act is considered both a display of good manners and respect for the fallen fellow. In fact, the worst insult an alghul can fathom for a fallen foe is to relinquish the opportunity to taste it's corpse, an act that is direly frown upon on the hunger folk culture and that may even result in exiling.

Relations

Oftenly mistaken with the ghouls and ghasts, the alghul share the same rejection the gavra, with their tortuous shapes, experience from the living folk. However, where the gavra may find themselves merely repelled or denied any civility, the alghul tend to be feared as savage predators and some societies who suspect that an alghul is roaming the local graveyard organize hunting mobs in order to get rid of the hunger folk. On the other hand, and in absolute reverse fashion, more open minded societies find fast allies in the alghul, as the hunger folk are eager to trade whatever they can if they can ensure an steady supply of fresh carrion. In fact, some communities see the alghul as protectors of the living since, by eating the dead, they ensure no unliving monstruosities ever come to be.

Contrary to what many may think, the alghul hold no ill will towards the gavra, only a sizeable amount of curiosity. The gavra are not dead, but smell like preserved dead, which makes for an exotic and alluring aroma to the carrion scent ability of the alghul who, by consequence, find the gavra as sitting over a blurried line in between appealing meal and exotic romantic companion. It is the vampires and their half-human offspring, the dhampir, whom the ought to fear the most of the alghul, for they see the undying lords as the ultimate prey and the tribal hunger folk have waged skirmish war upon them since their inception, claiming The Grey Wastes as their own. Content with this state of things, the alghul rarely, if ever, venture to the seas, so they have no dealings with the singing haunts.

Alignment & Religion

As being the result of a divine intervention according their origin myths, the alghul worship The King Of The White Kingdom, an enigmatic being said to come from the depths of The Abyss itself. Religion is central to an alghul existance as it explains and gives purpose to the hunger that constantly plagues the mind and senses of the hungry folk.

Alghul aren't evil per sé, but chaos is strong among them, and so most of them tend to be chaotic neutral, thought many grow more wicked as the hunger gets a stronger hold upon them, sometimes even driving their brittle psiche to rupture into hopeless insanity, to which they are, perhaps, slightly more prone than most other sentient creatures. Because of this, very few alghul take to pursue the path of power true arkane lore, instead leaning towards unholy piety when seeking to rise above their peers. Nevertheless, it's debatible if this keeps them from loosing their sanity any less than if choosing other ways to commune with the unknown.

Adventurers

While the life of an alghul could be summarized mostly as a briefly interrupted thrill of blood splattering and frenzied disembowelling, some aren't satisfied entirely with this. Perhaps an sliver of what they once were crepts back, now and then, prompting the alghul to seek something else than the war against the unliving, something that cannot be found in the entombed depths of their cities. Sometimes, a particular alghul is way too chaotic and feels constrained in the hierarchy of the tribes, or perhaps, tired of the same tastes, sets it's aim to even greater prey and glory than what can be afound in the meager outskirts of the cities of the damned. One way or the other, the alghul were the gardeners of the world in a distant past, and some of them still retain the love for wanderlust that used to be a trademark for many of their kin in the past.

Standard Racial Traits

* Ability Score Racial Traits: As natural predators of the unliving, alghul posses quick reflexes and acute senses, but their feral countenance makes most folk wary of them. They gain +2 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom and -2 Charisma.
* Size: Alghul are Medium creatures and thus receive no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
* Type: Alghul are humanoids with the elf and half-undead subtypes.
* Base Speed: Alghul have a base speed of 30 feet.
* Languages: Alghul begin play speaking Common and Necril. Alghul with high Intelligence scores can choose any languages they want (except secret languages, such as Druidic).

Defensive Racial Traits

* Elven Immunities: Being related to elves, the alghul retain some of their trademark immunities to certain spells and effects. As such, alghul are immune to sleep effects and gain a +2 racial bonus to saving throws against spells of the enchantment school and a +4 against all kind of mind-affecting effects, as the huner that festers inside the hunger folk is a force hard to silence or deceive. Nevertheless, in contrast with their ancestors, the alghul do sleep and do not enter in a meditative trance upon resting.
* Blightchild: Having twisted their physiology to draw nourishment from rotten flesh and decomposing matter, the alghul have developed notable natural defenses against many kinds of maladies that would make short work of any normal living being forced to lead a dietary path like theirs. The alghul receive a +4 racial bonus on saving throws against disease, and a +2 racial bonus against ingested poisons and effects that would make them to be nauseated or sickened.
* Negative Resistance: Since the alghul are based on negative energy, they suffer no penalies from energy-draining effects, though they can still be killed if they accrue more negative levels than they have hit dice. After 24 hours, any negative levels they've gained are removed without any additional saving throws.

Feat & Skill Racial Traits

* Stalker: The hunt comes naturally to the alghul. As such, Perception and Stealth are always considered class skills for them.

Offense Racial Traits

* Bite Fighter: While alghuls are civilized enough to use crafted weapondry, the first weapon they ever learn to use is their own jaws. Because of this, alghul gain a primary natural bite attack that deals 1d4 + 1-1/2 the alghul's strenght bonus on damage rolls. In addition, an alghul can deliver a paralytic venom through it's bites on it's foes. The fortitude save DC is 10 + 1/2 Hit Dice + Constitution modifier; the frequency is 1/round for 6 rounds; and the effect 1d2 Dexterity damage; with only 1 save required to cure it. The alghul can use this poison a number of times per day equal to it's Constitution modifier (minimum 1/day), does not provokes attacks of opportunity and is always considered armed.

Senses Racial Traits

* Carrion Sense: Since their primary diet consists of carrion, the alghul can use a modified version of the Scent ability, but only for corpses and badly wounded creatures (creatures with 25% or fewer hit points).
* Darkvision: Underground dwellers, the alghul have developed darkvision up to 60ft. 

Weakness Racial Traits

* Light Sensitivity: As their eyes have adapted to the darkness of the deep, alghuls are considerably sensible to bright light. As such, they are dazzled as long as they remain in an area of bright light.
* Unnerving Presence: Possesing the distorted visage of a feral elven creature, and consantly radiating an smell of fresh carrion, the alghul are almost universally reviled and feared, for way too often they are mistaken with the dreaded ghouls and ghasts. More importantly, alghul physiology is fueled mainly by negative energy and, as such, even common beasts react harshly towards this sensation of antinaturality on them. As such, alghuls suffer a -4 penalty on Bluff, Diplomacy, and Handle Animal skill checks, but gain a +2 bonus on Intimidate skill checks. Additionally, all NPCs and animals start with an attitude one step worse than normal when dealing with the alghul.
* Negative Energy Basis: While alive and biological entities in all respects no different from most living beings, alghuls animating force stems now from negative energy and, thus, share with the unliving the quality of being harmed by positive energy effects. Worst even, spells and effects that would raise the dead (such as the spell Raise Dead) can potentially destroy the alghul by the sudden and massive influx of negative energy on them. Whenever such happens, the alghul must make a Will saving throw against the spell or effect DCs or be destroyed beyond hope.

Other Racial Traits

* Carrion Eater: The signature trait of the alghul amid the creatures of the darkness is, without doubt, it's diet. In order to survive, an alghul must consume, at least, 1 pound of carrion every day. If carrion is not readily accesible, an alghul can begrudgingly derive nourishment from eating food more suitable for the living, thought he will consume it with great disspleasure and will require 5 times the normal amount a humanoid would requite for survival. Then again, this merely staves off the malfunction of the body as an alghul rapid digestion and negatively bolstered methabolism is cappable of astounding feats of efficiency, allowing it to consume an almost indefinite amount of matter and regenerate damage from it. An alghul that is able to consume the entire body of a medium dead creature (or aproximately 120 pounds of carrion) in one sitting needs only to wait 1 hour to regain an amount of hit points equivalent to 25% of it's current maximum hit point total. An alghul, however, cannot gain more hit points than it's current maximum total in this fashion. Despite this, alghuls are known to indulge in gorging themselves to the brimm for the mere sake of sating their ever present hungers, and the primal pleasure they derive from the sensation of splattering blood, breaking bone, and tearing apart viscerae and flesh alike.

- The Writer.