Underfolk

Underfolk are a human offshoot hailing from the Underdark of Dungeons & Dragons. As a result, they have begun adapting - or perhaps devolving - to better survive in their subterranean home, developing albino coloration, increased body hair and oversized eyes & ears. Appearing in Races of Destiny, they are an evolution of the basic concept expressed in the Lerara race of Greyhawk. An alternative take on the race are the Deep Imaskari, from the 3e Forgotten Realms' Underdark splatbook.

The precise fluff behind the Underfolk is kept generic, since they are less a race and more a racial archetype (the "morlock") that DMs can easily slip into their worlds wherever they please. Some underfolk were forced underground, others migrated there voluntarily. Likewise, how much memory they retain of the surface world is entirely up to the DM. Regardless of their origins, the underfolk tend to share the same basic build, since it's a natural evolution to their Underdark environment. Like a 3e elf, underfolk tend to be both short and slight, typically standing between 5 and 5-1/2 feet tall and weighing 100 to 150 pounds. They are covered in thick body hair, and their hair in general tends to be either black or silvery-white, whilst their skin has the grayish-white to black coloration of their rocky underground environment, providing a natural affinity of camouflage. Their eyes and ears are proportionally larger - and keener - than any surface-dwelling human's.

Typically, an underfolk race will be a simple, clannish people dedicated to protecting hearth and kin; having lost access to more advanced technologies, they have turned to the primitive ways of the survivalist, becoming quick, stealthy and survival-orientated. If you want a more technologically advanced version of underfolk, look at the Deep Imaskari instead. Despite their rustic ways, the underfolk thrive because they have learn to survive in the hostile environment around them, and their knowledge of underdark survival is typically second to none... at least, outside of the deepest depths, where nobody sane wants to go. Underfolk live in the “shallowest” regions of the underground, within a mile or so of the surface. Tribes live in the same territory as orcs, goblins, drow, and other subterranean dwellers, but do their best to remain unnoticed. Most underfolk tribes number between fifty and one hundred individuals, although larger tribes exist, including at least a few “cities” of nearly a thousand people. Underfolk tribes with a militaristic bent make forays into orc and goblin warrens, in an effort to drive those creatures out of areas they want to claim for themselves.

Being surrounded by horrible monsters and evil races, it should be little surprise that underfolk are typically insular and focused on their tribe's well-being. All are at least mildly xenophobic, though this usually manifests in a distrust of strangers - which is perfectly sensible behavior because, hey, this is the Underdark. Those who are willing to make gestures of friendship and prove their worth will find the underfolk to be deeply loyal and trustworthy, since these traits are what has helped their civilization survive. While not as bound to their grudges as dwarves are, underfolk nevertheless take oaths very seriously and immediately sever ties with any being who lies or otherwise deceives them.

Like most primitive races, Underfolk are deeply spiritual and connected closely with the natural world. Some tribes brought the memories of the “surface gods” with them, especially Obad-Hai. Tribes in close contact with dwarves or gnomes show a healthy respect for Moradin or Garl Glittergold. Underfolk maintain a deep spiritual connection with their home and have come to understand the subtle rhythms of its seasons. They delight in the natural beauty of underground caves, warrens, and grottos, and do their best to keep them from harm. Underfolk have a rich oral tradition and fill their speech with allegories, oaths, and hyperbolic statements. Unlike those of dwarves, who share a similar custom, underfolk stories are poetic and rather dreamlike in quality. Singing is a favorite pastime among underfolk, and every individual knows a litany of tunes.

Understandably, underfolk prefer to keep to themselves, in so far as that's an option. Practicality demands that they at least try to build goodwill with friendlier races that live nearby, both above and below the surface. Underfolk often forge ties with human, halfling and elf societies, although they are naturally suspicious of the surfacers, have decidedly neutral relations with dwarves (who tend to look down on them as primitive screwheads - but find a surprisingly compatible culture if they can get over themselves, and they often form military alliances), and are decided enemies of the drow, kuo-toa, orcs and goblins, since the poor underfolk live in just the right band of territory where they face off against all four races regularly. In what has to be the author screwing up their D&D lore, Races of Destiny also says that underfolk are the target of svirfneblin aggression... which is pretty damn remarkable, since the svirfneblin are the only Underdark Demihuman strain defined by being not evil! Given that subsequent lore entries in the book talk about underfolk tribes that are on good terms with dwarves, it's possible that this was a screw-up and the author was actually thinking of duergar.

Underfolk live close enough to the surface that they still speak a heavily accented version of Common, with each tribe infusing its speech with phrases from Dwarven, Gnome, or other languages from nearby races. Underfolk learn to speak these languages as well, and they find Undercommon especially useful. Few underfolk bother to learn how to read, and those who do use Dwarven script rather than Common. Underfolk names were originally human, but have evolved over generations of isolation from humans and the influx of words from subterranean races. The few linguists who have studied the simple and guttural underfolk names see connections with surface cultures that died out long ago.

Hardy, self-reliant, and fierce in battle, underfolk commonly become barbarians or rangers. Because of their tie to the natural world, underfolk spellcasters are druids or clerics, although wizards and sorcerers exist among tribes in close contact with gnomes. Their rich oral history and love of song make bards a common sight among the underfolk, acting as liaisons and diplomats between far-flung tribes. Rogues are uncommon, but they excel in the darkness, slinking among the stones with quiet grace. Paladin and monk underfolk are exceedingly rare.

PC Stats

Humanoid (human): Underfolk are humanoid creatures with the human subtype.

Medium: As Medium creatures, underfolk have no special bonuses or penalties due to size.

Underfolk base land speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision: Underfolk can see in the dark out to 60 feet. Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and underfolk can function just fine with no light at all.

4 extra skill points at 1st level and 1 extra skill point at each additional level, since underfolk (like their human ancestors) are versatile and capable. (The 4 skill points at 1st level are added on as a bonus, not multiplied in.)

+2 racial bonus on Listen checks: Living as underground hunters for generations has given underfolk keen hearing.

Weapon Familiarity: Underfolk treat light and heavy picks as simple weapons rather than martial weapons.

Camouflage (Ex): Underfolk can change their skin coloration at will to mimic the surrounding terrain, giving them a +4 racial bonus on Hide checks. In rocky terrain, this bonus increases to +10. This ability works even if an underfolk is viewed with darkvision, although true seeing negates the bonus.

Light Sensitivity (Ex): Underfolk are dazzled in bright sunlight or within the radius of a daylight spell.

Automatic Language: Common. Bonus Languages: Drow, Dwarven, Gnome, Goblin, and Orc. Underfolk mingle with subterranean races and learn their languages to facilitate interaction.

Favored Class: Any. When determining whether a multiclass underfolk takes an experience point penalty, his highest-level class does not count.