Races of the East: Spirit Folk
Spirit folk are the descendants of humans and various spirits of nature. They are not common in any land but are found most often in and around Rashemen, a land renowned for its guardian spirits. A small number of spirit folk can also be found in Thesk, among Shou immigrants from distant Kara-Tur. The spirit folk of the Unapproachable East belong to two distinct branches - mountain spirits and river spirits.
Personality: Spirit folk tend to be serene, attuned to their surroundings and at peace with the world. Their ancestry gives them an awareness of the spirit world, but they have little desire to manipulate that world through magic. They manifest a love and enjoyment of life that many humans envy.
Physical Description: Spirit folk look human, although they are fine-featured, with small mouths, thin eyebrows, and pale or golden complexions. They have no facial or body hair, but the hair on their heads is thick and luxurious. They appear in all the diversity that humans display, although most spirit folk in the East show Rashemi features and coloring. Many are strikingly beautiful.
Relations: Spirit folk typically live as part of human society, although they rarely remain in any one village or town for more than a single human generation. Spirit folk prefer to blend in with the surrounding population, acknowledging human rulers and making their way through life as any full-blooded human would. Their neighbors don't realize how different the spirit folk truly are and regard them as "wise ones" who understand things most people do not perceive.
Spirit folk get along well with elves and fey creatures of all sorts, as well as the spirits of Rashemen.
Alignment: Perhaps because of their strong ties to the natural world, spirit folk seek a benevolent balance between extremes. They tend toward neutral good alignment.
Religion: Spirit folk share the religious habits of their human neighbors. In Rashemen, they often venerate Silvanus, Mielikki, and Selûne.
Language: Spirit folk speak Common, Sylvan, and the local human language of their native region - usually Rashemi, but sometimes Shou or Tuigan.
Names: Spirit folk of Rashemi descent usually have Rashemi names. Male: Andar, Chevik, Daumar, Hladislak, Ilvik, Olek, Pergaur. Female: Ayvarra, Belmith, Emmezel, Gevarra, Iseldra, Karra, Ranya. Surnames: Antonin, Fyodorin, Gudenny, Kerska, Molotva.
Adventurers: Some spirit folk more acutely feel their differences from their human neighbors and take up the life of an adventurer to find their way. More rarely, sheer wanderlust impels spirit folk to explore the world and experience its natural beauty.
Regions: Most of the spirit folk found in the Unapproachable East are native to Rashemen or Thesk and choose the appropriate region. The Shou region is also appropriate for spirit folk immigrants from Kara-Tur.
Mountain Spirit Folk Racial traits
Mountain spirit folk have the following abilities and characteristics.
- Medium-size.
- Land speed 30 feet.
- Mountain spirit folk have a base climb speed of 30 feet. They gain a +8 racial bonus on all Climb checks. The mountain spirit folk must make a Climb check to climb a wall or slope with a DC of more than 0 but can always choose to take 10, even if rushed or threatened while climbing. A mountain spirit folk who chooses an accelerated climb moves at double the listed climb speed and makes a single Climb check at a -5 penalty. Mountain spirit folk cannot use the run action while climbing. They retain their Dexterity bonus to Armor Class (if any) while climbing, and opponents get no special bonus to their attacks against climbing mountain spirit folk.
- Low-Light Vision: Spirit folk can see twice as far as humans in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. They retain the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
- +2 racial bonus on Balance, Jump, and Tumble checks. Mountain spirit folk are at home on steep slopes and sheer pinnacles that would terrify most humans.
- Once per day, a mountain spirit folk can use speak with animals to speak with any bird. This ability is innate to mountain spirit folk. It has a duration of 1 minute (the spirit folk is considered a 1st-level caster when using this ability, regardless of actual level). See the speak with animals spell description.
- Automatic Languages: Common and Sylvan. Bonus Languages: Aquan, Auran, Giant, Goblin, Mulan, Rashemi, Shou, Tuigan.
- Favored Class: Any. A multiclassed spiritfolk's highest-level character class does not count when determining whether she suffers an XP penalty.
River Spirit Folk Racial Traits
River spirit folk have the following abilities and characteristics.
- Medium-size.
- Land speed 30 feet.
- River spirit folk have a base swim speed of 30 feet. They do not need to make Swim checks to swim normally. They gain a +8 racial bonus on any Swim check to perform some special action or avoid a hazard, and they can always choose to take 10 on these checks, even if distracted or endangered when swimming. They can use the run action while swimming, provided they swim in a straight line.
- Water Breathing: River spirit folk can breathe water as easily as they breathe air.
- Low-Light Vision: Spirit folk can see twice as far as humans in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination: They retain the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
- +2 racial bonus on saving throws against spells and spell-like effects with the word "water" in the name of the effect.
- Once per day, a river spirit folk can use speak with animals to speak with any fish. This ability is innate to river spirit folk. It has a duration of 1 minute (the spirit folk is considered a 1st-level caster when using this ability, regardless of actual level). See the speak with animals spell description.
- Automatic Languages: Common and Sylvan. Bonus Languages: Aquan, Auran, Giant, Goblin, Mulan, Rashemi,Shou, Tuigan.
- Favored Class: Any. A multiclassed spirit folk's highest-level character class does not count when determining whether she suffers an XP penalty.