Sarli, Keran (3.5e Race)
| Blades Of Keran |
|---|
| Player Info |
| World Reference |
| DM Info |
Sarli
The Sarli are a mysterious and somewhat cat-like race. They are rare and far-apart so as a result they have little in the way of unified culture. They drink blood to sustain themselves and have an almost obsessive fascination with undead and the occult, hence their tendency to specialize in necromancy or being a necromancer.
Personality
Sarli tend to be mysterious and charming, though they always appear devious, as if they have something to hide or are plotting something. They always speak courteously and gently to all creatures, even in combat, but they have a semi-permanent snide look and often lace their soothing tone with sarcasm. Most Sarli's tends to be relaxed, calm, and easy-going but slightly lazy. They tend to be lazy so far to works that are not of importance in their lives and can be seen not focusing their attention on things that does not interest them. But a Sarli can be hard-working and can spent their entire time on something that gets their attention. Mostly a Sarli that focused her attention and trains on a subject that is of interest to her can become an expert on it in a matter of days. Sarli's tends to be interested in the study of anatomical structure's of almost all species and are fascinated on how one develops and why it utterly leads to death and why. They are not far from studying undeath and almost all subjects under it. Because of this, Sarli's are not far from being corrupted in their study of the arts, specially its dark secrets and some are known to go way over what is morally accepted. Apart from their evil, sarcastic and sometimes easy-going nature, Sarli's are at most disciplined and cultured. They know how to act well mannered and civilized if the occasion ask it and they know how to dress well. They also like to groom themselves well, bathing, picking the right clothes, and present their selves to the public as best as possible.
Sarli's mostly prefer simple, practical yet luxurious dark clothes, they prefer actual comfort and shows of wealth through clothing but most of the time, being extravagant does not help so being comfortable in their clothing is what they apply most of the time.
Physical Description
Sarli's are a humanoid race, except that they have cat-like features, like having large cat ears, slightly loose skin, fur, cat tails and other minor cat-like details. They are humanoid in almost all aspects except that they are digitigrade (weight is borne on the toes) in which they use their toes to walk, run or stand straight. Being a digitigrade does only apply to their feet and Sarli's still have access to a fully functional humanoid hands, and because of this body make-up, Sarli's have great difficulty on running on all four's unlike other feline humanoids and are not good swimmers.
Sarli have a variety of strange features. They look vaguely feline but have snake-like pupils and fangs that can give hint of their diet. Their bodies are slender, lithe, appears frail and almost all of it are covered with black, short, fur with the thickest are located at the chest, knees, at the elbows and arms(though it is still slightly short and albino Sarli's are seen but slightly rare). They have crystal-like claws and deep, golden, mysterious eyes(though red, violet and green are seen but mostly uncommon) as well as a long ultraviolet-tipped tail. Sarli tends to have long flowing hair which grows rapidly at the 6th month after birth, though they tend to trim the male's hair to what is acceptable in human standards.
They stands from 2-1/2 to 3 feet tall and weighs between 15 to 25 pounds only, with female's shorter and lighter than male. Sarli tend to reach adulthood in their late teens (17 yr old) and can live for almost two to three century with little to no change of their adult appearance. Almost all of their kin are gifted with good physical appearance, from being simply cute, to charming, to outright attractive, which sometimes works like charm in certain situations.
Relations
Due to their appearance and reputation, few races, including evil races, trust Sarli. However, Elves and Dwarves are particularly unnerved by them and sometimes cannot even abide their very presence, largely because of their connection to the occult and the undead, not to mention their diet of daily blood. Because of this, they are not usually welcomed to Dwarven or Elven lands and if a Sarli visitor steps inside one of either territories, they are either be mistreated or directed to the exit. They tend to get along moderately well with Kobolds, though neither can explain why, they somehow just seem to "click" and both enjoys the company of each other. Sometimes, Kobold's will help a Sarli in its time of needs if needed be and will try to protect them if possible. Urbane's however are more aware of their evil tendency, though they treat the Sarli's just like other Catfolks are treated and are always fair with their dealings with them.
They are fairly tolerated and sometimes(though its rare) are taken good care by Karmainian's who finds them pleasing yet mysterious, even though humans do get their fair share of sarcastic replies when they are with them. Good humans are mostly concerned about their welfare and safety and sometimes will try their best to take good care of them. A lot of times however, good humans always tries to watch the Sarli's daily activities if possible since Sarli's are usually involved on an evil activity or are known to be kidnapped by evil entities. Evil and vile humans are in constant need of the Sarli's magical services, specially their expertise in the undead and are willing to pay high specially during war in where massive forces are needed to replace the casualties.
However, with all the benefits that the Sarli's receive from humans, there is always an air of a cold, sad feeling of fear and uncertainty when they are dealing with them and Sarli's are afraid to completely trust a human even those who treat them good. A large part of this is because some humans find Sarli's as an object of love and desire, either finding them cute, entertaining or attractive and it is not limited to those of evil alignment.
Since they are physically weak and prone to being mistreated, misjudged or abused by opportunist or other races who have slights on their kin, it is hard to see a Sarli alone and most of them are seen within parties or groups of four souls or more. A party composed mostly of Sarli's are rare to find, which leaves them little choice but to ally themselves with other races mostly Karmainian's, Urbane's or Kobold's. This give's them also no choice but to always go in pairs to guard each other, if possible. If ever abandoned, lost, or separated, they are not far from approaching legitimate authority or someone that looks trustworthy and ask if they are able to join with them for a moments time until they find another member of their race.
Alignment
Sarli have a mild tendency towards evil, but encountering a good or neutral Sarli is not at all uncommon. Those Sarli that are evil tend towards lawful or neutral evil, those that are good tend to stray away from lawful good. These is partly because of their upbringing and how they are taught on how to live in a world in where they are mistreated and not trusted.
Lands
Sarli's do not have a large territory that they call home, every Sarli's are on their own from birth with the exception of parents and nearby kin. Whatever land that they legally own, they protect it fiercely if ever be threatened and they are not afraid in using magic and necromancy to ward and protect it from hoax claimers, thieves and such. However, Sarli are known to live wherever there is a book to read, food to eat, and they don't get attacked more than four times a week. Shelters are preferred warm and comfortable, if ever it be available and if ever they are settled, it must be near a source of profit for their kind.
Their native to Kratoa, specifically the county of Boneclaw.
Religion
Most religious Sarli worship Jaccob or Nihlus, however male Sarli seldom themselves to any particular gods.
Language
As Sarli don't have a land of their own they try to learn the languages around their homes. But all Sarli can speak "Trade Tongue" & "Kratain".
Names
Sarli favour mysterious names, if any at all. They are generally few and spread out, so one in a small community may go through life being known simply as "The Sarli"
Racial Traits
- +2 Intelligence and +2 Charisma, -2 Constitution and -2 Strength. Sarli are clever and charming but feeble and weak.
- Humanoid (Sarli).
- Small Size
- Sarli base land speed is 20 feet.
- Low-Light Vision: Sarli can see twice the distance of a Karmainian in Moon-light, or otherwise shadowy illumination.
- Darkvision: 60ft
- Sarli receive a -2 racial penalty to bluff checks due to their untrustworthy looks and devious reputation, plus the fact that their tails tend to wiggle when they lie.
- Sarli receive a -4 racial penalty to swim checks, as their bodies are ill adept to an aquatic environment.
- Sarli receive a +2 racial bonus to Sense Motive checks. Sarli' can naturally look at someone's intentions which helps them through their everyday lives.
- Sarli receive a +2 bonus to Spellcraft & Concentration checks made when casting necromancies or trying to identify a necromancy via detect magic due to their innate familiarity with the school.
- Sarli receive a +2 racial bonus to saving throws against necromancies, due to their innate knowledge of necromancy and how to resist it.
- Sarli receive a +2 racial attack bonus against rats, dire rats, were-rats, and other rat-like creatures. This represents an instinctual predatory ability to successfully hunt rats.
- Sarli get a +1 insight bonus to AC against undead creatures due to a keen nose for carrion and an ability to sense the path of the negative energy approaching them. This same sense grants them a +1 bonus to weapon and spell damage rolls against undead creatures.
- Sarli are immune to a were-rat's lycanthropy curse and cannot become were-rats by any method (including wishes and divine and epic level magic) unless they are first changed so that they are no longer Sarli.
- Natural Weapons: primary bite(1d4piercing damage) and 2 claws attacks(1d3 points of slashing damage). Because of these weapons they qualify for the multi-attack feat
- When a Sarli bites a creature, it can lick up some of the sweet blood that flows forth as a free action. This has no statistical bonus other than its nutritional value, but it's fun.
- Diet: another setback from their ancestors is that Sarli enjoy hunting and eating live prey. Regardless of this, they have no qualms about eating cooked meat or even a vegetarian meal. However, they must drink at least one ounce(1/2 point of Constitution worth) of blood each day in order to keep their iron supply up. Failing to do so will result in one point of temporary Constitution damage per day without blood. The loss will be regained at the normal rate of ability damage healing, but a Sarli can recover it all in an hour by drinking one eighth(mostly 4 points of Constitution worth) of its weight in blood. Sarli also like cheese.
- Sarli cannot abide the flavour of dwarven blood (they say it tastes like vodka and sour milk) and any Sarli that drinks the blood of a dwarf must make a fortitude save (DC:11) or be nauseated for one round.
- Favored Class: Wizard.
Vital Statistics
| Adulthood | Simple | Moderate | Complex |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 years | +3d6 | +3d8 | +3d10 |
| Middle Age1 | Old2 | Venerable3 | Maximum Age | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 90 years | 160 years | 245 years | +8d10 years | |
| ||||
| Gender | Base Height | Height Modifier | Base Weight | Weight Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 2' 6" | +2d4 | 20 lb. | × (1) lb. |
| Female | 2' 5" | +2d4 | 15 lb. | × (1) lb. |
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