Eletum

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The Eleti are a race of playable undead in the Dragonstar setting for Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition.

The eleti (singular eletum) are undead. They resemble skeletons, but have independent minds and wills of their own.

An eletum is an animated skeleton formed from the remains of a humanoid creature. An eletum can create “offspring” by gathering the necessary magical energy into one of its own bones over the course of a year. It then places the empowered bone within a skeletal corpse that comes to life as the eletum’s “child.” This process is somewhat uncomfortable for the parent, but not really painful. The empowered bone remains part of the child’s body.

The eleti may be undead, but they are neither unintelligent nor inherently evil. For ages, those around the eleti were unable to understand this fact, and regarded the race with fear, suspicion, and hostility. The eleti were forced to live isolated, lonely lives. They either hid their nature in order to exist amongst the living, or shunned the living altogether and lived in solitude. Eleti communities were rare, since gatherings of undead tend to spark anger and violence amongst the living.

All this changed with the advent of the Dragon Empire, which blessed the eleti with two great gifts. The first gift is the tenet of active morality. Under this philosophy, individuals cannot be legally judged by their alignment, and must be judged by their actions. While this doesn’t directly help the eleti get along in living society, it does make society more willing to accept them despite their disturbing appearance and undead nature. After all, if one’s associates are orcs and drow, one will have fewer qualms about working with a living skeleton.

The Dragon Empire’s second and more important gift is that of space travel technology. For it is in the cold, airless vacuum of space that the eleti have truly found their home. Eleti make excellent deep-space engineers, technicians, and explorers because they are undead. They need no air, food, or water, and are naturally protected from heat, cold, and radiation. If a spacecraft with an eleti engineer needs an external repair, the engineer simply steps out the airlock and does the repair without a bulky vac suit to get in his way or worrying about his air supply if the repair runs longer than expected.

Personality

Before receiving the gifts of the Dragon Empire, the eleti were a melancholy race, forever isolated from the living societies of which they longed to be a part. Some eleti tried to earn their place among the living by performing good deeds. Others let their longing turn to bitterness and chose to attack the living instead. As citizens of the Empire, the eleti can finally join society, but realize that the living will always be uneasy in their presence. Most eleti ignore the nervous glances from those around them and focus on doing their jobs. A few eleti avoid the living altogether. They spend their immortal existence meditating on their undead state learning to understand their inherent magical nature. These mystics have no hostility towards the living, but can be dangerous when disturbed. They simply want to be left alone.

Physical Description

Eleti appear as animated humanoid skeletons. Little flesh clings to their bones, and their joints are held together solely by magic. Eleti stand five to six feet tall and weigh 60 to 80 lbs. Eleti of small size are three to four feet tall and weigh 20 to 25 lbs. This weight is clearly more than bones, but it is unknown what adds to their weight.

An infant eletum is similar to a human infant. It is ignorant and incapable of controlling its body. However, eleti mature to adulthood in about a year. After that, they do not age, and are effectively immortal.

When traveling in the Outlands or other areas where their appearance may cause problems, eleti dress to conceal themselves. When working in space, eleti wear only thruster packs and harnesses for their tools.

Relations

The eleti have better relations with the living than they did before the Dragon Empire. Other races are still uneasy around them, but value their usefulness in space. It is a mark of pride to have an eletum engineer serving aboard one’s spacecraft.

Drow, orcs, and half-orcs have no problem with the eleti. Better than any other race, they realize the importance of being judged by one’s actions, not one’s race or appearance. Of course, since these races are typically considered evil, having them vouch for an eletum’s character is of dubious value.

Dragons and half-dragons are interested in the eleti only insofar as they can help expand the Empire. Eleti are often sought out and recruited into the Legions. Soldiers who are immune to the rigors of space are an invaluable asset. The eleti respect the dragons, but do not fear them. After all, they can hide in places few can follow.

Alignment

Eleti are independent creatures, with no preference towards any one alignment. They may be malicious, kind, or lawless depending on their own nature. Each is raised by its parent and taught how to interact with others. Because of this closeness, an eletum often has an alignment similar to its parent’s. Eleti Lands: Eleti congregate in small colonies far from habitable planets, typically beneath the surface of airless asteroids or dead, forgotten moons. Because the eleti don’t need food or other resources, there is little for them to fight over, so their colonies are usually quiet, peaceful places.

Each colony reflects the spirits of its inhabitants. A colony of mystics, for example, may be nothing more than a series of underground meditation cells linked by bare rough-hewn tunnels. A more extroverted colony may have well-lit towers stretching miles above the surface, welcoming off-worlders in need of eleti services. A few colonies are mobile. Their homes are “boneships”—large spacecraft without airlocks or even windows to hold back the vacuum of space.

Religion

Some eleti offer homage to the Reaper, believing they owe their existence to the beneficence of the god of death. Others worship the Merchant with an eye towards increasing their wealth and power. Like alignment, however, religious beliefs vary wildly, and are mostly based passed down from parent to child.

Language

Eleti have no language of their own. They speak Common but may learn any other languages they choose. Despite the lack of a throat, eleti can speak clearly. Their voices sound human, though there is a subtle hollow ring that can be distinguished by astute listeners.

Eleti also use a complicated sign language (unrelated to the drows’ sign language) that allows them to communicate with each other in vacuum, where sound does not travel. This is not a secret language, and an eletum will often teach at least a few phrases to his companions so they can communicate in space.

Names

Most eleti have only one name, which is given to them by their parents and taken from the nearest humanoid culture. In the last century, a few eleti have taken to using the name of their colony as a second, family name.

Adventurers

It is not uncommon for an eletum to leave his colony in search of excitement or the acceptance of the living. Eleti can find adventure in space performing missions too dangerous for the living. They are often technicians or engineers, although some actively seek out more military paths.

Eleti Racial Traits

+2 Dexterity: The magical nature that binds the eleti together gives them great speed and flexibility.

No Constitution: Eleti are not living creatures and have no metabolism. They do not have a Constitution score, and as a result, eleti are immune to any effect that requires a Fortitude save unless the effect works on objects. A spellcasting eletum uses its Charisma modifier when making Concentration checks.

Medium or Small size: Eleti may be of either Medium or Small size, chosen at 1st level. They gain all the normal benefits and restrictions for their size.

Eleti base speed is 30 feet if Medium-size or 20 feet if Small.

Eleti have darkvision up to 60 feet.

+2 racial bonus on Hide and Move Silently checks. Eleti are naturally adept at stealth.

+2 racial bonus on Freefall checks. Eleti have adapted to the lack of gravity in space, their new home.

Immunities: Eleti are immune to cold damage and take only half damage from piercing or slashing weapons as they lack internal organs. In addition, they are immune to vacuum and radiation.

Gravity Tolerance: All penalties due to high or low gravity are halved for eleti.

Undead Traits: As undead creatures, eleti are immune to mind-influencing effects, poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, and disease. They are also not subject to critical hits, subdual damage, ability damage, ability drain, energy drain, or death from massive damage.

Turn and Rebuke Undead: Eleti are subject to turning attempts by clerics and paladins. For purposes of turning, the eletum possesses a number of Hit Dice equal to its class levels. Turn and rebuke attempts have their normal effects on eleti. If a turn undead attempt would normally destroy an undead of the eletum’s level outright, it receives a Will saving throw (DC 10 + cleric’s class level + cleric’s Charisma modifier). If the save fails, the eletum is destroyed. Even if the save succeeds, the eletum is still subjected to the turn effect.

Command Undead: Successful command undead attempts allow the eletum a Will save (DC 10 + cleric’s class level + cleric’s Charisma modifier). If the Will save fails, the cleric may control the eletum as if by a dominate person spell. If the save succeeds, the eletum is able to retain control, though it is still affected as if by charm person.

Automatic Languages: Common. Bonus Languages: Any (other than secret languages). Eleti may encounter any sorts of creatures during their travels and often learn to speak a broad variety of languages.

Favored Class: Fighter. A multiclass eleti’s fighter class does not count when determining whether or not there is an XP penalty for multiclassing (see PHB, Chapter 3, Experience for Multiclass Characters). The eletis’ many resistances make them good front line fighters.

Level Equivalent: +3.

Eleti Racial Feats Self Control (General) You are more capable of resisting commands from clerics and paladins than most of your race. Prerequisites: Eleti only Benefit: When resolving a command attempt, if your save succeeds, then you completely negate the command attempt.

Improved Self Control (General) You are more capable of resisting commands from clerics and paladins than most of your race. Prerequisites: Self Control Benefit: When resolving a command attempt, if your save fails, you are still able to retain control, though you are affected as if by charm person.

Turn Resistance (General) The eletum has learned to resist the channeled divine power of clerics and paladins and as a result gains additional resistance to attempts to turn, rebuke, command, or bolster undead. Prerequisites: Eleti only Benefit: When resolving a turn, rebuke, command, or bolster attempt, add a +3 bonus to the eletum’s class levels. Special: An eletum may gain this feat multiple times, and the benefits stack.