Deep Dweller Half-Orcs
The recent expansion of the Deep Dweller Half-Orc tribe has met with some concern at first. Worried that they might be working with Coalhearts to “induct” new slaves from the roadside was eventually understood. Their population had grown so much that the Coalhearts could not afford to have their exclusive services any longer. Entrepreneurial but wise, Deep Dwellers are seeking both South beyond the border, and anywhere else a deep unmapped land may lie. Whether ancient mountaintop caves, sewer systems underneath cities or underground cavern the Deep Dwellers see it as their role to find what truth there is to be found there.
Physical Description:
Tending toward flexibility over brute strength the Deep Dwellers are the least bulky of their kind. Still a head taller than the average human, their skin tones are more often closer to earth tones rather than the green of their brethren. The Deep Dwellers find the idea of a relationship beyond their own kind disturbing and wrong. The tribe of orcs that originally spawned the Deep Dwellers have long since passed from history.Society:
For many generations the Deep Dwellers were exclusively part of the Coalhearts nation, the Iron Grasp. Though no Coalheart will ever admit it, the Deep Dwellers are more at ease in the depths of the Redridge Mountains than they are. Amicable relations with Coalhearts are still held, and many Deep Dwellers still work among the Coalhearts for their gold paid well for at least their contribution. A large number of the tribe have left to find new mountains to explore, and new civilizations to aid for the right incentives.Relations:
Free Peaks Dwarves and Deep Dwellers are often found working either in concert or competition in the extreme mountains of the world. Deep Dwellers find those who see the forest as a home as strange and unnatural, as who would want anything but a hard roof over one’s head. Strangely the Deep Dwellers are often at odds with the Oread, who view their attempts at exploring Gith-ro-tul as meddlesome and invasive. However, other races find the Deep Dwellers mild nature without judgement refreshing.Alignment and Religion:
While a few Deep Dwellers acclimate toward worshipping Droskar along with the Coalhearts, most Deep Dwellers are more ambivalent towards worshipping a deity. The only deities worth mentioning might be Erastil or Gozreh, but both focus to much on what is above and not below. They have reverence for the mountains themselves believing that each cave they walk tells a tale of the ancient land. Their neutral attitude about right and wrong, chaos or order tends to put most members of the Deep Dwellers in a True Neutrality, though their own personal history can color their placid nature.Adventurers:
Seeing the above ground as well settled by the other people of the Dycides, Deep Dwellers see the caverns of the earth as the last frontier to conquer. Adventuring allows them to contribute, make a fair wage and one day settle into a cavern of their own to have a family and spread the now traveling Deep Dwellers forward. Their only deep hatred is for the aberrations of the underground. Most significantly mimics are an affront to a Deep Dweller. Tending toward Rangers, Fighters, Witches or an occasional Druid, Deep Dwellers view any profession in adventuring with some respect. How a Deep Dwellers song can carry underground in the even inspires them to be Bards on a rare occasion.Stats Block
Ability Score: Deep Dwellers characters gain a +2 bonus to one ability score of their choice at creation to represent their varied nature. Type: Deep Dwellers are Humanoid creatures with both the human and orc subtypes. Size: Deep Dwellers are Medium creatures and thus have no bonuses or penalties due to their size. Base Speed: Deep Dwellers have a base speed of 30 feet. Languages: Deep Dwellers begin play speaking Common and Orc. Deep Dwellers with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following: Draconic, Dwarven, Gnoll, Halfling, Terran, and Undercommon. Climb: Deep Dwellers have a climb speed of 20 feet, and gain the +8 racial bonus on Climb checks that a climb speed normally grants. Undersight: Deep Dwellers gain +2 Perception which increases to +4 when underground. Stealthy: Deep Dwellers gain Stealthy as a bonus feat at 1st level. Darkvision: Deep Dwellers can see in the dark up to 120 feet. Cavewight: Deep Dwellers live far below the surface, seeking freedom in winding cave complexes. They gain a +1 racial bonus on Knowledge (dungeoneering), Survival checks made underground, and can retrace their steps flawlessly in caverns. Orc Blood: Deep Dwellers count as both humans and orcs for any effect related to race.
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