The Phorain as monsters are detailed in This Post.
Requirements: STR 15+ and CON 15+
Prime Requisites: STR and CON
Hit Dice: D12
Maximum Level: No limit as Fighters, all other classes 6th level.
Phorain never surrender, never retreat. In extreme circumstances they will go berserk, laying waste about them until they themselves are reduced to zero CON (Burning 1d4 CON to regain full hit points until running out of CON), but once they begin this process there is no going back and they will surely die at the end of their Berserk Fury.
They kick for 1d6 (+STR bonus), Bite for 1d8 (+STR bonus), and can use most weapons. A Phorain will do their best to acquire, adapt or purchase the best armor that they can afford/find/get their hands on. If they are vain about any one thing, it is how spiffy their armor is and they will invest loads of money for enameling, inlays, carving, special tassels, etc. This is often mentioned as to why Phorain mercenaries typically cost double anyone else's given price. The truth of the matter is that any one Phorain is generally worth at least two of any other troop-type they are likely to face on the battlefield and they make incredibly good commanders and leaders.
Phorain have a +2 bonus on all saves, with a +4 bonus versus poison specifically and they always save as one level higher than their current level as a Fighter. In addition, they can take 1d8 damage in order to re-roll one missed Save once a day. When a Phorain fails on any save, they take an additional 1d4 damage automatically.
When confronted with magical Fear effects, a Phorain will tend to seek out the source and attack it with all available means at its disposal. Should a Phorain succumb to magically induced Fear, they will take 1d4 damage, shrug off the effect and charge headlong at whomever targeted them with the spell. If the caster is not visible, or it is an environmental effect, the Phorain will designate a target that they believe is causing the Fear effect and strike at them.
They have double the normal carrying capacity for their strength.
Healing Potions only do one-half effect on them, but they do pretty well against poison, so it's a trade-off.
They prefer electrum to all other coinage and have an innate loathing of Serpent People based upon a long, long standing enmity between the species.
Like the Rhinocerenary, these guys are incredibly handy, but have real potential to get themselves and the party into trouble as well as out of it - that Berserk Fury would be a thing to see.
ReplyDeleteI love how these playables are coming out, and how we get a deeper insight into the creatures in the process. Your bestiary is cool.
@Porky: Jody has rolled a Phorain up to go play through the Kalaramar Drifts a bit. These critters are tough, up front, but lack the overall adaptability of humans and they ultimately suffer for it--though few Phorain ever die from old age.
ReplyDeleteThese are awesome!!! How have I missed your blog all of this time??!!!
ReplyDeleteWe're just happy you found us. Thanks for the comment--we just ran a group into Zilgor's Repose that included a Phorain. That went pretty well. We'll have a play-session report posted in a couple of days.
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