Editing Beastman (D&D) (section)

==Greyhawk==
[[File:Beastman MC Greyhawk.jpg|right|300px]]
[[File:Beastfolk Greyhawk.png|right|300px]]
'''[[Oerth]]ian Beastmen''' are a very different kettle of fish to their Mystaran relatives. A primitive species of forest-dwellers, beastmen look like pointy-eared humans of short, slender built, covered from head to toe by a two-layer coat of fur. The outer coat is comprised of fine fur that is dark green or olive in color, whilst the inner coat is coarsely textured black fur. Some unusual instinctively triggered effect allows the Oerthian beastman to selectively raise and lower this underlayer; this creates a pattern of sstripes and spots, enhancing the race's ability to blend into the hues and shadows of their forest environent.

It also means they have very little interest in clothing or ornamentation, rarely wearing more than easily removed utility belts or bandoliers.

In fact, this camouflage ability is actually integral to the beastman language, which is a combination of verbal noises, hand motions, body gestures, and specific fur-patterning. As such, whilst other races can learn to understand "beastman", they can never speak it with the true level of fluency and nuance that a beastman can.

This race exists in a Stone Age equipped hunter-gatherer lifestyle that hasn't changed in eons, and are very well adapted to their lifestyle. With nothing the outside world tends to want and wanting from them in turn, the beastmen may never change from this lifestyle.

Beastmen live in tribes of about 40 to 60 individuals, typically weaving houses together in the canopy of their native forest. Each house consists of a family group of 3-6 adults of mixed genders; beastmen practice their own strange form of group marriage. An unambitious people, the tribal chieftain is not set in stone, but is rather the beastman whose skills make them most desireable or valuable to the tribe on that particular day. For example, if the tribe is at war, the chief is the best warrior. In cases where one or more individuals are suited to the task, a competition of some sort decides the leader. It is not considered an honor to be the chief of the tribe, it is just a duty that many are called upon to carry out from time to time. Likewise, there is no shame in never being a chief, or in losing a competition for the leadership spot.

Beastman culture does not discriminate against either sex. The only exception to this rule are pregnant women who, because of their importance to the future of the tribe, are treated with reverence and excused from all heavy activity. Young are raised by the community as a whole.

One of the weirdest traits of beastmen is that they have absolutely '''no''' sense of superstition or religion. They do not believe in magic, spirits, ghosts, or anything supernatural, as they believe that anything that cannot be seen, heard or touched simply does not exist. The race is known for its prodigious resistance to magic, but whether this caused them to develop their disbelief in the supernatural or it stems from their ardent disbelief is one of those chicken and egg questions.

Oerthian Beastmen are presented as a PC race in the AD&D Complete Book of Humanoids with the following stats.

::Ability Score Minimum/Maximum: Strength 6/18(50), Dexterity 6/18, Constitution 6/16, Intelligence 3/18, Wisdom 3/18, Charisma 3/16
::Ability Score Adjustments: +2 Dexterity, -2 Charisma
::Class & Level Limits: [[Fighter]] 10, [[Ranger]] 12, [[Thief]] 10
::Natural Armor Class 8
::In forest environments, a beastman can Hide in Shadows with a 90% chance of success.
::In forest environments, enemies unaware of a beastman's presence suffer a -6 penalty to their surprise rolls.
::A beastman with proficiency in Herbalism can spend aother proficiency slot to gain the ability to manufacture Beastman Blowdart Poison. This can only be prepared in the wild from the proper ingredients, but anyone hit by an envenomed blowdart must make a save vs. poison at +4 bonus or die in 2d4 rounds.
::A beastman has an 80% resistance to magic, which applies even against beneficial effects.
::A beastman cannot use any kind of magical item other than a magical weapon, and cannot initiate any special magical functions of a magic weapon.
::Weapon Proficiencies: Bola, blowgun, hand axe, knife (stone or wooden)
::Nonweapon Proficiencies: Alertness, Animal Lore, Animal Noise, Cooking, Fire-building, Fishing, Hiding, Hunting, Rope Use, Set Snares, Survival (Forest), Tracking, Wild Fighting

[[Category:Dungeons & Dragons]]
[[Category:Monsters]]
[[Category:Mystara]]
[[Category:Greyhawk]]