Outsiders
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Outsiders are creatures that originate from a plane of existence other than the Prime Material Plane. Several of these planes are often heavily influenced by morphic or divinely morphic traits, as well as possessing a strong affinity to a point on the ethical / moral axis. Considered to be partly composed of their plane of origin, they are often utterly alien to the inhabitants of the Prime Material.
All these races will require an application.
DM Expectations:
More so than Planetouched, pure outsiders are utterly alien in their outlook, as many outer planes have a far narrower range of conditions that they have accepted as part of themselves. It is essential for a PC to portray an outsider as a creature that is truly alien to this world, a creature that very few people can relate to. Most importantly, a player will need to justify why the Outsider has left it's home plane to travel to an alien world.
Janni are an exception, as they are native outsiders; They reside primarily in the Prime Material Plane.
Players will be expected to provide an extremely compelling and creative narrative to play these races.
Contents
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Githzerai
Racial Abilities:
+4 Dexterity
+4 Wisdom
-2 Intelligence
Spell Resistance: 5 + levelLimited Psionic abilities (Only one power can be activated at one time) - 3/day
Inertial Barrier (Psychokinesis) : +4 to AC lasting for 1 round / level
Telekinetic Slam (Psychokinesis) : 1d4 bonus force damage per hit lasting for 1 round / level
Psionic Daze (Telepathy, Compulsion) : Dazes a target with a DC based on your wisdom scoreFavored Class: Monk
Alignment: LN, TN, CN
General
Githzerai look very human, though they are thinner and their skin tone is frequently gray or yellowish. They are, on average, six feet in height and about one hundred sixty pounds in weight. Most have a high natural resistance to magic.
Instead of worshipping a God, which they regard as a form of slavery, they revere the memory of their ancient hero, Zerthimon. His followers call themselves the Zerth.
The life expectancy for a Githzerai is about 200 years.
History
The ancestors of the githzerai (the "forerunners") were once slaves to the illithids, a race of powerful telepaths who mentally enslaved sentient humanoids to work as the backbone of their vast worlds-spanning empire. It is believed these slaves were originally humans transformed through selective breeding. Eventually, these slaves developed mental resistance to their masters' mind control and, under the guidance of their leader Gith, revolted. This led to the fall of the illithid empire.
Gith, however, was not satisfied with the destruction of the illithids alone, and sought to spread the war to any race that could potentially enslave her people again. She was opposed in this endeavor by the followers of Zerthimon, who believed that such a path would lead their people to corruption and ruin. Thus, at the Pronouncement of Two Skies, the gith race factionalized into the githyanki and the githzerai, the former of whom settled in the astral plane.
Society & Outlook
Githzerai principally inhabit the Chaotic "soup" of Limbo, which they form into cities, citadels and monasteries with pure thought. Due to this, all Githzerai have extremely disciplined and focused minds, which combined with their limited psionic abilities, shapes their entire culture.
The Zerth in particular, base their lives around the teachings of the hero Zerthimon, whom they regard as the first Forerunner to gain free will from the Illithids. The teachings of Zerthimon, which they claim are the experiences that allowed him to begin the revolt against the Illithid empire, can be summarized as follows:-
1. Strength lies in knowing oneself; those who do not know themselves are lost and open to the manipulations of others.
2. A willingness to learn is a sign of strength.
3. Endure. In enduring, grow strong.
4. Learn to see the whole, or be blinded to the truth.
5. Many in unison can accomplish more than many alone.
6. Seek balance, or lose sight of your goal.
7. Patience is a virtue.
8. Focus and discipline are the key to strength; diversion is the key to weakness.Each tenet is meditated upon and unraveled by Githzerai neophytes in the exact order provided above, which are known as the Eight Circles of Zerthimon.
The full text of the circles can be found here, and is something every Zerth would know intimately.
Characters
Unlike their relatives the githyanki, the githzerai do not normally fight with weapons, nor do they utilize long-distance psionic attacks against their enemies. Rather, the githzerai prefer to bring the "good fight" to their enemies; typically meaning the githyanki and the illithids. Their combat abilities, including their psionic powers, are geared more toward unarmed combat. Hence, a large number of githzerai become warrior monks.
Githzerai often organize war parties called rrakkma for the explicit purpose of hunting illithids. A rrakkma does not return from such an excursion until it has killed at least as many illithids as there are githzerai in the war party.
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Githyanki
Racial Abilities:
+2 Strength
+2 Dexterity
+2 Intelligence
-2 Wisdom
Spell Resistance: 5 + levelLimited Psionic Abilities - 3/day
Dimension Door (Psychoportation): Teleport to creature
Favored Class: Fighter
Alignment: LE, NE, CE
General
Githyanki are humanoid in appearance. They are approximately of Elven height but tend to be much more gaunt and long of limb. They have rough, yellow or grayish skin, much like their cousins, the Githzerai.
Githyanki primarily define themselves by their martial traditions. Young warriors are expected to go through a rite of passage in order to be considered a full adult. This rite typically involves slaying either an Illithid or a Githzerai Zerth. Although they have limited psionic abilities, similar to the Githzerai, the Githyanki do not develop them, preferring to use magic over psionics.
The Githyanki breed by laying eggs. However, as the astral plane is timeless, and all biological functions cease there, it is necessary for them to travel to other planes in order to breed, which results in routine incursions into the Prime Material plane.
They inhabit large castles in the Astral plane, built on what some consider to be the divine bodies of dead deities.
They are currently ruled by the ancient lich, Vlaaklith.
History
The history of the githyanki dates several thousand years, beginning with the rise of the illithid empire. The Forerunners of the Githyanki and the Githzerai were a slave race to the Illithids, probably humans. The people that would become the githyanki and the githzerai were formed out of generations of selective breeding to create a breed that would best serve the illithids.
However, two individuals of the Forerunner race, Gith and Zerthimon, developed their psionic powers to an extent that they were able to throw off the shackles of illithid mind control, and regain independent thought. The two of them managed to raise their entire race in revolt against the Illithids. Within a few years, the illithid empire, already crumbling, was toppled.
While Zerthimon sought to come to peace with themselves, to learn just who they were as a race now that they were free for the first time in their race's existence, Gith sought to continue the rebellion and destroy every race capable of enslaving their own.
The followers of Gith and Zerthimon split during a final confrontation known as the Pronouncement of Two Skies; The Gith-zerai (The opponents of Gith) and the Gith-yanki (The Children of Gith).
Ever since, the two races have served as blood enemies to one another, which is however completely eclipsed by their joint hatred towards the Mind Flayers. The Githzerai took up residence in Limbo, while the githyanki established their first fortress cities, including the great capital Tu'narath, in the Astral Plane.
Knowing they could not destroy their enemies alone, Gith and her chief adviser Vlaakith made a pact with the archfiend Tiamat, securing the aid of Red Dragons for their battles. Gith never returned from this journey, but the pact was sealed, the Githyanki race can call upon any Red Dragon in the planes for aid.
Society & Outlook
The githyanki are an intensely martial race, a quality that suffuses nearly their entire way of life. From the first days of adulthood, all githyanki are expected to train to defend the race, with even those not part of its armies expected to have at least some training.
No githyanki settlement is designed without a strong defense, to ensure an invading force has no good means of approach even within the three-dimensional navigation of the Astral. Even civic life functions more like a regimented battalion. Githyanki culture has few laws for githyanki, because the chain of command holds over all members; the concept of "civilian" barely exists within the culture, and is usually equated with "weak" or "infirm". What little crime there is isn't the matter of breaking a law, but rather of disobeying ones superiors either explicitly or implicitly.
Information gleaned from several sources, but principally from here. Please visit the link for more detailed insight into the Githyanki.
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Janni
Racial Abilities:
+4 Strength
+2 Dexterity
+2 Intelligence
+2 Wisdom
+2 Natural AC BonusInner Flare: Endure Elements 1/day
Air Shift: Invisibility 1/day
Control Fire: Burning hands 1/day
Transmute Earth: Grease 1/day
+10 rounds underwater breathing
DarkvisionFavored Class: Fighter
General
Janni are full genies (not human bloodlines derived from genies, which would be a janjanni) which are composed of all four elements, unlike the other major types of genies, namely Efreet (Fire), Dao Djinn (Earth), Marid (Water), Djinn (Air). Janni typically get along well with their distant cousins, the extraplanar genies.
As they are formed of all four elements, they cannot exist for too long in a single elemental plane, and must return to the Prime eventually. This makes them native outsiders, outsiders whose primary plane of residence in the Prime Material. Therefore, their culture and modes of thought depend entirely on the area they inhabit, while still tempered by their supernatural heritage.
They typically inhabit arid deserts, coasts, mountainous areas and the like, where there's a strong influence of a native elemental plane present. Several Janni can be found wandering the plains of Zakhara or the dunes of the Anauroch.
Society & Outlook
As they are native outsiders, Janni typically follow the customs of the region they inhabit. Jann are physically strong and courageous, and do not take kindly to insult or injury, bearing the immense pride of all creatures born of the elemental planes. If they meet a foe they cannot defeat in a stand-up fight, they typically use their abilities to escape and ambush their foes. Acceptance of defeat or cowardice is inherently unthinkable to a Janni, often making them seem reckless and stubborn.
Characters
For the purposes of this server, most Janni will probably be from the Anauroch desert, and thus possessing a strong Bedine culture and outlook in life. While even those from the Anauroch would be an extremely rare sight, Janni from other regions in Toril would be almost unheard of. (However, a good enough narrative / reasons in your application can overcome nearly any barrier)
Information on Bedine culture can be found here.
