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sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
11827 Posts |
 Posted - 02 Dec 2019 : 00:27:03
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So, I was told that we were changing to a new campaign two hours before the game was going to start and to make up a new character. I jokingly asked the DM if I could make a kercpa, and he said yes. So, I hurriedly through together a race for him to approve. I've since modified it just a little more. Still, I'd actually like to use this possibly in Anchorome, so I'm kind of playtesting.
I'm specifically staying away from the typical view of a kercpa and playing a kercpa wizard. Since its size tiny, I THOUGHT a tressym was size small, and I was summoning one as a familiar to use as a mount (I now know that there are no size small familiars that fly, they're all tiny). However, I also had him riding upon a variant jackalope that I named Bullwinkle (to add to this, one of the party was playing a noble human sorceress named Elsa with a cold fetish that liked to sing... and the rest of the party were tabaxi, aarakocra, and kenku). Still, I'm noting that a tiny kercpa isn't hindered in damage like a weapon wielding one would be. That being said, they have other hindrances due to their size. Take a look at the below and give me some feedback (remembering there's some significant disadvantages to counter some of these advantages).
Kercpa Race
Ability Score Increase: Your Dexterity score increases by 6. Your strength score is decreased by 4.
Age: a kercpa reaches adulthood at the age of 10 and generally lives into their 50's
Alignment: typically chaotic good
Size: typically a foot and a half tall, but varying from a short as 1 foot to as tall as 2 foot. They weigh roughly 5 pounds. Your size is tiny.
Speed: base walking speed is 20 feet. Base climbing speed when in trees is 30 feet.
Squirrel's Nimbleness. You can move through the space of any creature that is of a size larger than yours. You have advantage on dexterity based saving throws.
Natural Acrobats. You gain proficiency in the acrobatics skill
Dodge Missiles. You can use your reaction to dodge the missile when you are hit by a ranged weapon attack. When you do so, the damage you take from the attack is reduced by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifier + your character level.
Kercpa Weapon Training. You have proficiency with the dagger, shortsword, shortbow, and longbow.
Tiny Hands, Tiny Weapons. Due to being size tiny, the base damage of any wielded weapon is halved. In addition, bonus damage added to melee or ranged attacks, such as sneak attack, are rolled at a disadvantage.
Tiny Bodies. Your maximum hit points at 1st level and every level gained after first level are reduced by two (ex. so a 3rd level kercpa character will have 6 less maximum hit points). In addition, your carrying capacity is reduced by a multiple of five (i.e. a person with 10 strength can normally carry up to 150 pounds (15 lbs x 10), so a kercpa of similar strength has a carrying capacity of only 30 pounds). Due to your size differences, you cannot wear normal armor or wield normal weapons, and getting armor crafted for a creature of your size typically costs ten times as much as normal.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Sylvan.
Subrace. The two main kinds of kercpa, Flying and Woodland are more like closely related families than true subraces. Choose one of these subraces.
Flying
Flying kercpa possess a flap of skin between their fore and hind legs which they can use to glide between trees. They are also arguably the more outgoing members of the kercpa race, more often acting as "the face" to outside groups. Perhaps due to this, more kercpa paladins, sorcerers, and bards are found amongst the flying kercpa population, or even kercpa warlocks taking fey pacts.
Ability Score Increase. Your charisma score increases by 2.
Gliding. These kercpa possess a glide speed of 30. A glide speed assumes that the kercpa falls by 5 feet every turn, and must move their full glide speed movement. The kercpa can choose to dive by converting horizontal movement into downward movement.
Woodland
Seldom trusting big folk, Woodland Kercpa seldom leave their homeland, and many kercpa druids, rangers, and clerics can be found amongst their numbers.
Ability Score Increase. Your wisdom score increases by 2.
Stealthy by Nature. You gain proficiency in the stealth skill
Tiny Hides Easy. You can attempt to hide even when you are obscured only by a creature that is at least one size larger than you.
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Alavairthae, may your skill prevail
Phillip aka Sleyvas |
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shades of eternity
Learned Scribe
288 Posts |
Posted - 02 Dec 2019 : 00:32:49
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Let me state for the record when I say hot diggity!
It may sound like crass.commercialiation, but this l, if tested and expanded, could make you something on the dmsguild.
X
I know I'd certainly pick it up for the novelty alone. #128512; |
check out my post-post apocalyptic world at www.drevrpg.com |
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Seethyr
Master of Realmslore
USA
1151 Posts |
Posted - 02 Dec 2019 : 01:27:42
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| Yeah I’m a big fan. The damage issue I’d have to play test for certain. Is there precedent with any official races for such small creatures? I just wouldn’t want to discourage anyone from taking a melee class with a Kercpa character (particularly rangers) and seeing that damage difference would discourage me (and I don’t consider myself a min maxer). |
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The Maztica Campaign
The Anchorome Campaign |
Edited by - Seethyr on 02 Dec 2019 01:28:13 |
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Seethyr
Master of Realmslore
USA
1151 Posts |
Posted - 02 Dec 2019 : 01:32:38
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| Here’s a thought. Perhaps tiny hands could exclude weapons with the “light” property (unless they try to wield two weapons). |
Follow the Maztica (Aztec/Maya) and Anchorome (Indigenous North America) Campaigns on DMsGuild!
The Maztica Campaign
The Anchorome Campaign |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36804 Posts |
Posted - 02 Dec 2019 : 02:33:15
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I don't recall kercpa having the flying/gliding thing, in prior editions, and I can't find it in prior write-ups of them.
The kercpa had a good write-up in Dragon 214; it's one of the articles I made a point of copying to Word.
I also have this info from Ed:
quote:
@Greysil_Tassyr
Those little humanoid squirrels, the kercpa. They were Core D&D back in the days of 2E. Are there kercpa in the Realms? If so, where can they be found, and are there any notable members of the race?
@TheEdVerse
Their numbers have fallen sharply in the Realms due to concerted attacks by fey races and goblins, but they can still be found in large numbers (no one knows exactly how many due to their secretive and active nature, and the cover provided by their forest homes) in the eastern High forest, the Lluirwood, and the Forest of Amtar, and in smaller numbers in Shilmista, the eastern Chondalwood, and The Great Wild Wood. They've also been seen in Laerakond. Notable individuals: a far-traveled adventurer, Rilstajar "the Rapier;" a legendary prankster heroine who's probably long dead and whose exploits are embellished with many new tall tales named Lyracheelie "the Leaf;" and a tireless explorer and trader, Suldarn of the Many Acorns (a "joke title" given in derision he liked, embraced, and now bears proudly). The kercpa increasingly keep to themselves, fearful of diseases brought by humans and of being wiped out by their many foes, but are otherwise of merry nature, hedonists who live in the present, knowing life is fleeting
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Edited by - Wooly Rupert on 02 Dec 2019 02:34:46 |
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sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
11827 Posts |
Posted - 02 Dec 2019 : 21:51:00
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The flying option was my add, based on the fact that there's squirrels and there's flying squirrels both in the world. So, I decided to give a subrace that was more "outgoing" and have that one be both rarer, but also the flying ones. That being said, I won't say it was entirely my idea, as I think in past discussions here we talked about having a flying squirrel option.
On the weapon damage thing, I want to try and give the counterargument, even though I myself struggled with this piece. I really think that this needs working through.
On the weapon damage, a somewhat comparable creature is the sprite, and they only do one point of damage with their arrows (but they're magical arrows). Now, I say that, but I actually picture sprites as much smaller than a kercpa (like, I picture a sprite to be big enough to stand in my palm... so like 6 inches high maybe... where's a kercpa is 3 times that). One thing I do note from prior editions though is that kercpa fired multiple times per round automatically (they attacked 3 times per round with a bow specifically). Perhaps they get a second attack when using a bow right off the bat? Given that later sneak attacks are also reduced, that might not be so bad. Now, that being said, I get it... I wouldn't necessarily want to play a ranger whose damage was all reduced, or a rogue whose sneak attack damage is all halved.... but these guys are more focused on other skills that those classes have. Or honestly, if you wanted to just play a fighter or paladin with one and say choose the woodland race, you would get sneak, acrobatics, missile dodging, advantage on dex saves, etc... It could also be worthwhile for them to use poison as well to even the odds against big folk. The chief things with these guys though is they may not be offensive, but they're very defensive (unless an area effect hits them, or something that requires strength, etc...). They also end up with a VERY high dex, which when applied to finesse weapons and AC makes them useful in combat against hard to hit creatures or to draw attacks that are more likely to miss.
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Alavairthae, may your skill prevail
Phillip aka Sleyvas |
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Seethyr
Master of Realmslore
USA
1151 Posts |
Posted - 03 Dec 2019 : 01:27:19
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| It’s very difficult to work out a tiny player race as there is no model creature to make a comparison. Similar issues come with multi armed species where balance vs reality seem at odds. |
Follow the Maztica (Aztec/Maya) and Anchorome (Indigenous North America) Campaigns on DMsGuild!
The Maztica Campaign
The Anchorome Campaign |
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sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
11827 Posts |
Posted - 03 Dec 2019 : 02:15:01
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yeah, I've never played a tiny character before, and its presenting odd challenges. For instance, where do I put any treasure I gather? I've been playing up the "cuteness" of my kercpa, who is turning to "Elsa" and asking "Elsa, you help Rakiki and keep his money for him?". If he needed to open a door, it would be a challenge for him. I'm already thinking I'm going to get mage hand first chance I get, though I've been casting unseen servant every hour as a ritual, just to basic things. He COULD also do a tenser's disk for carrying things as a ritual, but he'd still be dependent on someone to load it if its not light enough for his servant to lift. But all these things are only because he's a wizard. If he were any other class, he'd have even more problems. I figured though that if I wanted to find abuses, the wizard class was the way to go.
btw, I present Rakiki, my kercpa wizard, in picture form. Took a "squirrel assassin" 3d model and got rid of its shirt, took a dagger out of its hands, and put a bow in its hand. I need to add a quiver, and probably change the dagger into a wand, but its a start.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=15YpS84CyvYXypRmsKv154PKLNbHmX2gx
Oh, and to give attribution to the creator of the squirrel assassin model
Squirrel assassin (http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3313479) by schlossbauer is licensed under the Creative Commons - Attribution license.
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ |
Alavairthae, may your skill prevail
Phillip aka Sleyvas |
Edited by - sleyvas on 03 Dec 2019 02:17:36 |
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sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
11827 Posts |
Posted - 04 Dec 2019 : 00:06:50
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so I had been using the idea of an al-mi'raj as a mount for them. I also wanted a flying mount and was picturing a tressym being small until I learned they weren't. So I started searching for other small familiars. Flying monkeys from Tomb of Annihilation are specifically mentioned as viable options (with DM's permission it says) for familiars, and they are small beasts. Now, I can't see this in most TYPICAL instances with kercpas, but since it doesn't require your familiar to be from your local surroundings (i.e. you summon and bind a spirit and tell it to take a form)…. It does sound a little crazy to my ears to see a squirrel riding a flying monkey.
That being said, the other "tiny" race I've been thinking about for a while was "mousefolk" down in Katashaka…. and I can DEFINITELY see this happening with them if they ever get any wizards (which would be rare). |
Alavairthae, may your skill prevail
Phillip aka Sleyvas |
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sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
11827 Posts |
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Kercpa race in 5e
