Sep 21, 2016

Wednesday update time!

Our progress continues to be slow, but with a little over a month to go I’m still hoping we can reach goal. Thanks to everyone who has already ordered as well as those of you who have recommended Magus to others.

Today I’ll move the journey forward a bit to Pentaz & Buscidia’s time on the peninsula known as The Blade where Pentaz spends a few months receiving a bit of formal education in his magicking at a small academy run by the head of a Wilder Elf community. You can read about that starting here in Chapter 31.

The Wilder Elves (pronounced will-der as in wilderness) are seen as savages by most of the more "civilised" elves in the far eastern elven nation of Lanadalaria, and even their less judgemental cousins in Hanaen sometimes regard them as a bit backwards. They live as nomads in the untamed wilds, living entirely off the land and flowing with the seasons. When they do build settlements it is only temporary structures, huts of vine, wicker, and fallen tree limbs which have seen no blade.

While they tend to avoid contact with those who do not live as they do, they are not hostile to outsiders and will often aid those they see in need, albeit secretly when possible. Like all elves they have innate magical talent, though all but their shamans and priestesses use this talent only for blending in and tracking game.

That’s all I’ve got for today’s update. As always thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed this bit of insight. For my fellow D&D players my prototype Wilder Elf racial option follows(as with the Dwarven options I presented this presumes you only gain what is listed below, not the standard PHB qualities as well).

• Ability Score Increase:  +1 Dexterity, +2 Wisdom.
• Age:  Typically reach adulthood at around 100-120, aging at around 1/8th human rate until then. Their aging slows down significantly at this point, to around 1/40th human rate, causing them to maintain a youthful prime until around 850-900 years. They can live up to 1,000 years, with their aging speeding up dramatically this last century or so to around 1/2 the typical human rate.
• Alignment:  Chaotic Good.
• Size:  Medium, stand between 4’7" - 6’2"
• Speed:  30’.
• Skill Training:  You gain proficiency Perception and Survival.
• Weapn Training:  Proficient with Pikes, Shortswords, Longbows, and Shortbows.
• Reverie: They must sleep just as humans do, but while sleeping they are able to perfectly recall anything from their past through dreams. These memories fade somewhat upon waking, but if a particular aspect is focused upon when starting a Long Rest then immediately upon finishing the rest you can make an appropriate skill check(typically Arcana, History, Nature, or Religion) with Advantage to recall some bit of information/lore.
• Art of the Chameleon: By concentrating for 1 round you can wrap yourself in magic which causes you to blend in with your surroundings. This provides Advantage on Stealth checks provided that you move no more than 1/2 your Speed. This magic is extremely sensitive to strong emotions and thus cannot be maintained in combat.
• Life Sense: By actively concentrating as a Bonus Action you can sense the presence and vibrancy of life within a 30’ radius of you. The sensation is most commonly described along the lines of temperature as follows: alive and in good health (Warm); healthy plant life, or animal life in poor health (Lukewarm); plants in poor health, or animals in abysmal health/dying (Cold); and plants/creatures that will die or have died within 1 minute (freezing). Non-living creatures such as undead or constructs, as well as corpses, stones/minerals, and incorporeal creatures are merely voids in your perception with no temperature whatsoever.Since this does not rely on your normal sense you can use this ability while Blinded, Deafened, or otherwise unable to use your normal 5 senses. This does require the use of a Bonus Action every round it is used/maintained. This can be used to detect the presence of invisible creatures so long as that creature would normally be able to be sensed through this ability as described above, as well as to compensate for Blindness. At the start of any turn in which you are using your Life Sense in this way, you choose whether to negate your Disadvantage on Attack Rolls against a single creature or the creature’s Advantage on their Attack rolls against you.
• Languages:  Sylvan, Elven and 1 of the following – Common, Primordial, Gnomish, Orcish.