Deathclaw (3.5e Race)

Deathclaws

Personality

Deathclaws are somewhat aggressive, but rarely attack without provocation. They do not have any strong desire to kill, but believe it to be the most practical. A defeated enemy may seek revenge, but as they see it, a corpse just rots in the ground (often after passing through the deathclaw's Digestive system). They have a strong sense of honor and debts are always repaid. However, this does not give them a predisposed preference for law, as they almost completely ignore the concept of government, having less of a semblance of leadership than the most bestial sentients, more out of disinterest than inability. Due to their fearsome appearance, they are often mistrusted in the company of most humanoid races, leading them to covering themselves with large cloaks and rags, and claiming hideous communicable diseases such as leprosy. When in battle a deathclaw throws off its cloak with a roar and charges in heedlessly. It is not incapable of planning, it is incapable of following through, as their anger and thirst for blood gets the best of them, and they are fantastic at improvising.

Physical Description

Deathclaws have 2 large forward pointing horns, Much like a bull though much more brittle, Walk on two legs most of the time, but often run on 4. They have massive muscles in their thighs allowing excellent jumping and running. They (as the name implies) have large wickedly sharp claws on their hands, stooped over shoulders, and a short and thick prehensile tail, which evolution has denied of any true use. They have 3 fingers and 2 thumbs, giving great gripping strength, but little subtle manipulation(see Clumsy, Below). Their back is covered with spines, that shift size, shape, consistency, and color based on mood, and is outside of the deathclaw's control. They have large teeth, but the structure of their jaw prevents them from being used as effective weapons. They can be covered in either dark brown fur, or light tan gray scaly leather. They are capable of eating anything organic, no matter how irradiated, rotting or poisoned. They will often eat the corpses of their vanquished foes, more for amusement than the taste.

Relations

No special racial biases, but if someone wrongs a deathclaw, they may develop a personal hatred towards that individual's entire race, due to a mindset often described as absolutism, or viewing everything in "Black and white".

Alignment

) Deathclaws are any.

Lands

Depends. Furred=cold or temperate, Scaled=Warm or temperate. Nocturnal by nature, they usually take refuge in dens or abandoned mine shafts and such during the harsh light of day.

Religion

Generally a warlike deity, depending on campaign. Tempos would be a good one for Faerun players.

Language

Common, those spoken by nearby races.

Names

Usually adopt those of other races nearby, if a deathclaw hears a name it likes better than its own, it will often change its name to that.

Racial Traits

• +12 Strength, +10 Dexterity, +6 Constitution, -2 wisdom, -2 Charisma: Deathclaws are strong, agile, and tough, but intellectually bestial, Impulsive and angry, and fearsome looking.
• Monstrous Humanoid(Mutant):
• Large: -1 size on armor class, -4 hide, +4 Grapple
• Deathclaw base land speed is 60: Deathclaw Climb Speed is 40
• Scent, Darkvision 120 feet
• Poison Immunity(ex.): Deathclaws are immune to any and all ingested poison, but only ingested poison.
• Racial hit dice= 8d8, +5 base saves, +8 attack bonus, 5 feats, and 4 skill points per HD, adjusted for int, and x4 first level.
• Racial Automatonaphobia= Deathclaws have an inexplicable fear of golems and other such constructs in a general humanoid shape. When faced with combat by such a creature, the deathclaw is subject to a will save(2+attacking construct's strength mod + 1/2 attacking constructs hit dice + 2 for each size larger than the deathclaw or -1 for each size smaller) if it succeeds, there are no ill effects. if it fails by 5 or less, treat the deathclaw as shaken until the construct is slain or out of sight. If it fails by 6 or more, the deathclaw is panicked for a number of rounds equal to the number by which it failed the check, after this period, (If the construct is still animated), the deathclaw is shaken until it is slain, or out of sight.
• Fearsome Claws= 3d8 slashing plus 1/2 strength modifier, 16-20, X2. Bypass Hardness, affects incorporeal, attacks vs. Touch AC, and Bypasses X points of any and all DR where X is 1/2 the deathclaw's ECL + his Constitution Modifier.(this includes DR #/-) any remaining DR is Handled normally.
• Swift Claws=Treat the deathclaw's claws as dual wielded light weapons that always have as many attacks as is natural for your attack rating
• Natural Armor Bonus:+6
• Hibernative Restoration= Fully heals after 24 uninterrupted hours of sleep. if interrupted, use standard rules. takes a -15 penalty to listen checks, and cannot make spot checks.
• Clumsy= although agile, due to their enormous claws, manual dexterity is severely impaired. Any effect requiring subtle manipulation of the hands takes a -4 penalty to the respective roll, and ALWAYS takes 3 times as long. Also, the deathclaw cannot use any ranged weapon, and no feat may circumvent this. A deathclaw takes a -5 penalty to resist being disarmed(melee, obviously)
• Thick skin=DR 2/-
• Mutable Ridges= Due to the spiny ridge on the deathclaw's back, which change shape, length and consistency depending on mood and temperature (like a normal chameleon's skin color), Deathclaws are unable to wear armor of any kind.
• Resist Fire 5(scaled) or Resist Cold 5 (furred) .
• Vulnerability Cold (scaled) or Vulnerability Fire(furred).
• Automatic Languages: Common, bonus languages are those spoken by nearby races.
• Favored Class: Fighter.

Vital Statistics

Table: Deathclaw Random Starting Ages

Adulthood	Simple	Moderate	Complex
3 years	+d6	+d8	+d10

Table: Deathclaw Aging Effects

Middle Age^1	Old^2	Venerable^3	Maximum Age
270 years	560 years	1000 years	+10d100 years
At middle age, −1 to Cha; +6 to Str, Dex, and Con. At old age, −2 to Cha; +8 to Str, Dex, and Con. At venerable age, −3 to Cha; +10 to Str, Dex, and Con.

Table: Deathclaw Random Height and Weight

Gender	Base Height	Height Modifier	Base Weight	Weight Modifier
Male	9' 8"	+2d12	1,200 lb.	× (d6) lb.
Female	9'2"	+2d10	1,200 lb.	× (2d3) lb.

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