New Playable Races

We're not in Kansas Anymore!

Orcs, Sub-Orcs, Gnomes and Bugbears! Oh My!

There are dozens of "levelable" races native to Pelicar. Space limitations unfortunately prevented the inclusion of all of them in the Official Game Book. However, here are a few more races that a player might choose for his character.

BUGBEAR (Zoola·Humanoid·Anthropoid)
Attribute Modifiers Racial Maximum
+4 Strength 33
-2 Mentality 30
All Others 32

Bugbears are large strong humanoids well-suited for combat. They have a natural armor bonus of 5 points. This is due to a thick hide covered in dense black hair. This bonus is considered a passive defense bonus; thus it does not combine with armor. They stand at 2 meters tall, and even though they are a bit rotund, averaging 140 kilograms, bugbears may be slow but are not particularly clumsy. Their base movement is 90 MPM; however, this can be increased to 110 MPM by dropping to all fours. They have an advantage in Strength, gaining +4 and a penalty of -2 to Mentality. All other attributes top out at 32.

Bugbears can reproduce quickly as each female is capable of having one child per year throughout her mature life. However, only about one in five bugbear are born female. In societies of bugbear, women are rarely adventurers but are greatly respected. Often, organized clans of bugbear are ruled by a matriarch.

Bugbears live to a maximum of 85 years. However, even in stable areas, a bugbear has only a 50-year life expectancy.

Swords
GNOME (Zoola·Humanoid·Terrac)
Attribute Modifiers Racial Maximum
-2 Strength 30
-2 Stamina 30
-2 Reflexes 30
+3 Mentality 35
+3 Senses 34
+3 Sanity 33
All Others 32

Gnomes are a terrac race and are closely related to dwarves. Very few call themselves adventurers, although many join adventuring groups to aid in their many projects. They are only about a meter tall and are a bit stocky. Distinct bearded chins and pointy ears highlight their rough, weathered faces. A penalty of -2 applies to all three of their physical attributes (Strength, Stamina and Reflexes), but are otherwise well-endowed. They gain a bonus of +3 to Mentality, Senses and Sanity. Further, as a terrac race, gnomes have Grade 3 infravision and a resistance to alchemical substances. Moreover, gnomes are rarely effected by speed-based magic. Only if one fails his Stamina check can he be effected by speed or slow. As with all terrac races, the males and females age at different rates. Like their cousins, the dwarves, the male gnome lives longer.

Stamina Effectiveness
20-22 -20%
23-26 -30%
27-30 -40%

Gnomes are biotechnically prone to study, research and invent. Most of their projects end in failure, as they aim too high. However, they are always pushing the fold of technical, philosophical and scientific development. Gnomes care of little else than their field of expertise, occasionally forgetting to eat or bath for days. A few gnomes do break the mold and become true adventures, but not often.

Swords
ORC (Zoola·Humanoid·Anthropoid)
Attribute Modifiers Racial Maximum
+2 Strength 35
+1 Stamina 32
-1 Mentality 30
-1 Senses 32
All Others 33

Orcs are similar in build and stature to humans. They tend to be slightly heavier and their average height is a few centimeters more; however, the tallest orcs would still look up to the tallest humans. Moreover, an orc's jaw is larger than the average human jaw, supporting the tusk-like incisors of the mandible. Also, orcs live a little longer than humans with their average life span being 90 years with a maximum potential of 150 years.

Orcs gain a +2 to Strength and +1 to Stamina. However, mentally they are at a slight disadvantage with a -1 to Mentality and Senses. These humanoids can be found in any terrain, but are best known for their desert villages. It is not so much that they prefer this terrain, but rather they survive deserts nearly as well as plains and forests. Orcs require about half the water as most races do. Unlike most races, however, they must eat meat to survive. A vegetarian orc would quickly waste away.

Orcs compete with humans in the percentage of the population on Pelicar. They have the uncanny ability to breed with nearly anything. However, 70% of the offspring are malformed, requiring special care in order to survive. This is true even among orc-to-orc relations. The rest, though, become normal members of the local society. Offspring from an orc and another species often is referred to as a sub-orc. Nonetheless, the orcish biotechnical energies are so dominant in the mating process that a person's orcish heritage is always noticeable. In fact, if one were to observe a closed population of sub-orcs, one would note that in a few generations, only full fledged orcs existed. Lastly, the gestation period for female orcs is between 13 and 16 months.

Swords
SUB-ORC (Zoola·Humanoid·Anthropoid)
Attribute Modifiers Racial Maximum
+3 Special
-3 Mentality 30
All Others 33

As mentioned above a sub-orc is a healthy child produced from an orc mating with another species. These humanoids are extremely variable in appearance, ranging from 1 to 2.4 meters tall. Further their attributes vary greatly as well. First, a sub-orc suffers a -3 penalty to his Mentality. However, these three points may be arranged to the other attributes in any combination. Thus, a +1 bonus could be given to three attributes, or +1 bonus to one and a +2 to another, or all +3 could go to one score. However, in any case, the attribute cannot exceed the racial maximum. Only Piety is exempt from this manipulation, which suffers a -2 penalty.

Sub-orcs rarely identify themselves as a single race. They are extremely individualistic, often considering themselves to be unique beings. This is not necessarily a bad quality in an adventuring society; after all, conceit is one of adventurers most common personality quirks. Over 75% of sub-orcs attempt an adventuring career. This also means that their are very few old (or even middle-aged) sub-orcs around. The maximum age potential is 90 years.