Dhampyr - Bats in the Belfry
Aug 9, 2018 1:19:00 GMT -6
Post by Amanojyaku on Aug 9, 2018 1:19:00 GMT -6
The Dhampyrs are great humanoid bats native to a world aeons lost in the Abyss, who now claim the dark underhive depths and the pitch darkness of caves on worlds orbiting the dimmest ghoul stars. Particularly used to living where the veil of the Immaterium is thin, most Dhampyrs show great promise as Navigators, though some consider a Dhampyr's presence on a spelljammer to be a bad omen. The Dhampyrs themselves don't seem to mind; they'd just as soon not have to deal with other kinds anyway.
Dhampyr designs are simple and elegant, favoring dark colors and slender construction. They often wear apparel that seems vaguely tribal when dealing with other races, though this seems mostly to be specifically to mess with people. They tend to value their privacy as a people, you see.
Physical Characteristics
Average Height: 1.6-2.0m
Average Weight: 55-90kg
Languages: Trade, Abyssal
Common Personality Traits: Creative, aloof, unassertive, photophobic, intuitive
Common Physical Traits: Flat nose, large ears, shrill voice, slender build, clumsy
Example Names: Erebus, Curie, Nightscream, Tenebra, Whisper
Racial Statistics
Characteristic Bonus: +1 to Dexterity or Composure
Skill Bonus: +1 to Scrutiny and Stealth
Power: Chiropteran: Dhampyrs have Dark Sight and the Flyer trait with a rating equal to their normal Speed. Losing the use of an arm or wearing armor that covers the Arms makes the Dhampyr incapable of flight.
Size: 3
Racial Feats
Echolocator [Dhampyr]
You've got better ears than most Dhampyrs. Gain Heightened Senses (Hearing). As long as you aren't Deafened, you also don't suffer any of the normal penalties for fighting blind, except for the obvious ones - sonar won't help you read or see colors, after all.
Nightwing [Dhampyr, Paragon]
The deepest-dwelling clans are said to be so far from the light of the Materium that their scions are born touched by the Umbra. Add your Excellence to your Static Defense and Mental Defense except when targeted by magical effects.
Stretched Wings [Dhampyr]
The Flyer trait granted by your Chiropteran racial power has a rating of twice your Speed.
Treble Maker [Dhampyr]
It takes a bit of concentration, but you can pitch your voice at just the right amplitude to liquefy a berk's innards. Once per scene, you can produce an attack that uses the same profile as a sonic blaster.
Physical Qualities
Dhampyrs are slender humanoids built like Elves, though slightly broader of chest to accommodate the muscles required for flight. They have a shallow, wedge-shaped head capped by enormous triangular ears, nose flat against a short muzzle. The Dhampyr's body is covered in soft fur, ranging from a rusty sort of red-brown on through darker colors, while the skin beneath is usually either extremely pale or pitch-dark in color. Eyes are wide and reflective, usually showing brown or amber irises when they aren't completely black. Dhampyrs have wide mouths, with rather prominent fangs toward the front.
While a Dhampyr's legs are unremarkable - long and lanky like the rest of the body, with clawed, prehensile toes supporting weight - what tends to draw attention are their arms... or wings, rather. The skeletal structure is similar to most other races, a long bone in the upper arm leading into a two-boned forearm, a multi-boned wrist and five-fingered hands. In a Dhampyr, however, four of the fingers are grossly elongated, sometimes tipped with claws but always webbed together with a sturdy canopy for flight, attaching to the body just above the hips. This leaves only the thumb actually completely free to move, not that it actually impacts their ability to do most things that other humanoids can. If anything, Dhampyrs tend to have weak grips, leading to a tendency to drop things and thus their reputation for clumsiness.
Because of their wings, Dhampyr clothing tends to expose their sides and often their backs as well. While this might be sufficient by most standards of decency, they consider flight clothing to be something akin to what others think of as undergarments; a Dhampyr in public usually dons a long cloak, similar to what a Vampire might wear during the day, that serves the secondary purpose of covering the wings. Such cloaks also enable parents to hide pups from view, keeping their light-sensitive eyes away from the harsher light favored by other races.
Playing a Dhampyr
Dhampyrs tend to come off as quiet and unassuming among other races, preferring to lurk on the periphery of gatherings where they can observe without being forced to interact. When they do interact, they're very socially awkward, often stumbling over words and sometimes unable to get their own points across due to lacking some of the body cues of the more widespread races. They tend to live in tight-knit clans in the outskirts of more densely populated areas as a result.
Dhampyrs are nocturnal, their earliest belief systems centered around the moon with the sun as a devil figure. Their homes are kept dimly lit to accommodate this, using only pale white lamps, which serves to keep their eyes adjusted and to allow children's eyes to do the same without requiring exposure to potentially damaging sunlight. Contrary to popular belief, Dhampyrs do not build their homes upside-down, though they do tend to line walls and ceilings with climbing mesh; adults are too heavy to suspend themselves for so long, but children are encouraged to climb and glide in their play.
Dhampyr Heroes
The Squat fortress of Earthforge knows several names for death. One of them is Bheithir, the winged inferno who roosts in a forgotten temple to the north. Unbeknownst to the hell-Squats, the fiery Dhampyr's raids have a purpose more noble than sinister; she aims merely to collect food and materials for her study of the sealing circles deep within the ruin, hoping to find the bearers of the ninety-nine names inscribed there before someone less altruistic does.
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