A neraph (plural neraphim) is sometimes mistaken for a slaad at a distance, due to the two races’ similarity in appearance. However, neraphim and slaadi are distinct kinds of creatures, at least so far as any race can be considered distinct in the roiling chaos of the plane of Limbo.
Neraphim are a nomadic people who hunt through the maelstrom of Limbo, tracking their elusive and ever-moving prey. Neraphim have developed special hunting tools and techniques, giving them exceptional skill in bringing down the game they seek above all else: the chaos beast, one of which provides a neraph tribe with a week’s worth of nutrition and raw materials for clothing. They are proficient leapers, able to jump from mote to mote of stable earth in the otherwise ever-changing environment of Limbo.
For social and economic purposes, the neraphim organize themselves in houses. Each house lays claim to certain hunting grounds, giving its members access to resources within that territory. The various houses congregate once every seven years to conduct a great racial celebration known as the Festival of Spawning. During the festival, the houses negotiate with one another, exchanging resources and influence as each house seeks to better its position within the neraphim hierarchy.
Personality: Neraphim cannot afford to be as inconsistent as the plane they inhabit and the game they hunt — only stern discipline within each neraph house keeps its members from succumbing to poverty and starvation. Each house consists of a bonded group of neraphim made up of several related families and one matriarch. In the time between their Festivals of Spawning, the various neraphim houses meet only rarely, and then often in conflict over disputed hunting grounds. Alliances between houses are not uncommon, if a particular threat warrants.
Within each house, the rule of the matriarch is law, and her rule can be harsh. The most severe punishment a matriarch can dispense is exile from the house. Exiled neraphim can be encountered, though most are slain by other houses, slaadi, githzerai hunting parties, and roaming chaos beats. Some exiles have open personalities and strike up friendships with travellers from other planes, hoping to accompany them home and leave the dangerous realm of Limbo behind.
Physical Description: Neraphim are roughly humanoid in shape, with coarse red hide. Though bipedal like other humanoids, a neraph has a massive, toad-like head shaped like that of a red slaad. The range in height and weight found among neraphim is the same as found among humans. Chitin-like encrustations on a neraph’s skin provides it some natural protection; however, neraphim also prefer to wear colourful bone-spiked leather (made of stabilized and cured chaos beast hide).
Neraphim take longer to mature than humans do, not reaching adulthood until age 40, but they can live to be more than 400 years old.
Relations: Neraphim encountered while still associated with a house are generally unfriendly toward strangers, even those of the same race. However, exiles are more open-minded and may team up with others (whether neraphim, githzerai or some other-planar race) in order to survive. On the other hand, because neraphim remind some individuals of smaller, skinnier red slaadi, other races are usually a bit standoffish at first.
Alignment: Even though they hold themselves above the general churn of Limbo, neraphim can’t help having one chaotic component in their alignment. They try not to give in to their chaotic nature, and generally are successful in this practice.
Religion: Giving some credence to the theory that the neraphim are a subspecies of slaad, a few neraphim houses worship less bloodthirsty and less insane aspects of the entities Ssendam and Ygorl (who are normally considered to be, if not slaadi deities, at least very powerful slaadi worthy of respect).
Language: Neraphim speak their own language and Slaad. Some learn Common, which allows them to better communicate with creatures of other planes, and some learn Abyssal and Celestial.
Names: Neraphim have given names and house names. Those exiled from a house are usually ceremonially stripped of their house names, though some continue to refer to themselves as such, while others take appellations similar to “the Exile”, “the Stricken”, or “the Houseless”.
Male Names: Anh, Cado, Hao, Sam, Tam, Teo, Thanh, Thuan, Van, Xuan.
Female Names: Chi, Hyunh, Lan, Mai, Nam, Tham, Trinh, Yen.
House Names: Spent River, Hanging Cliff, Invisible Sea, Lost Mountain, Burning Water, Living Stone.
Adventurers: With little to no prospect of returning to his or her house, and with even less prospect of joining another house, an exiled neraph makes a perfect adventurer. Exiles who embrace this path soon learn to excel, for the skills that allow them to hunt in the changing seas of Limbo are useful elsewhere. Against all odds, some exiles adventure in order to complete a great quest or meet some other condition imposed by a house matriarch that might allow them back into a house. However, once a neraph discovers the greater cosmos, he or she seldom wishes to return to a primitive and nomadic lifestyle.
Outsider: Neraphim are native to the plane of Limbo, and thus have the outsider type. They gain the extraplanar subtype when not on Limbo. They are not subject to spells or effects that affect only humanoids, such as charm person and dominate person.
Medium: As medium creatures, neraphim have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
A neraph’s base land speed is 30 feet.
Neraphim have darkvision out to 60 feet.
Neraph Camouflage (Ex): When charging an opponent or when using a thrown weapon, neraphim can use a technique known as motion camouflage (also called neraph camouflage by other races), which predatory insects use to trick prey into thinking they are stationary even though they are moving closer. The target creature can be fooled into believing that the charging neraph or the neraph’s thrown weapon is in fact not moving closer, or moving closer only very slowly.
A neraph can make one camouflage attack per enemy per encounter (once a foe sees the attack in action, that foe can discern it for what it is for the duration of that combat). Creatures that are subject to a neraph’s charge or that are targeted by a weapon thrown by a neraph may not apply their Dexterity bonuses to their Armour Class. All conditions that pertain when a foe cannot apply his Dexterity bonus to Armour Class also pertain to the neraph’s attack (for instance, a sneak attack could also be made with this attack, if the neraph can make such an attack).
Leap (Ex): Neraphim are natural jumpers. They have a +5 racial bonus on Jump checks.
Weapon Familiarity: Neraphim may treat the annulat as a martial weapon rather than an exotic weapon.
+2 Natural Armour: Natural skin encrustations grant neraphim some protection against harm.
Skills: Neraphim have a +2 racial bonus on Spot and Search checks.
Automatic Languages: Neraph, Slaad.
Bonus Languages: Common, Celestial, Abyssal.
Favoured Class: Ranger.
Level Adjustment: +0.
Source: Planar Handbook (Page 12)
Your character can be either male or female.
Every player character starts as an adult. You can choose or randomly generate your character’s age. If you choose it, it must be at least the minimum age for the character’s race and class (see Table: Starting Ages). Your character’s minimum starting age is the adulthood age of his or her race plus the number of dice indicated in the entry corresponding to the character’s race and class on Table: Starting Ages.
Alternatively, refer to Table: Starting Ages and roll dice to determine how old your character is.
| Adulthood | Intuitive1 | Self-Taught2 | Trained3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 40 years | +3d6 (43—58) years | +5d6 (45—70) years | +7d6 (47—82) years |
1 This category includes barbarians, rogues and sorcerers.
2 This category includes bards, fighters, paladins and rangers.
3 This category includes clerics, druids, monks and wizards.
With age, a character’s physical ability scores decrease and his or her mental ability scores increase (see Table: Aging Effects). The effects of each aging step are cumulative. However, none of a character’s ability scores can be reduced below 1 in this way.
| Middle Age1 | Old Age2 | Venerable3 | Maximum Age |
|---|---|---|---|
| 125 years | 188 years | 250 years | +2d% years |
1 -1 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
2 -2 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
3 -3 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
When a character reaches venerable age, the DM secretly rolls his or her maximum age, which is the number from the Venerable column on Table: Aging Effects plus the result of the dice roll indicated on the Maximum Age column on that table, and records the result, which the player does not know. A character who reaches his or her maximum age dies of old age at some time during the following year, as determined by the DM.
The maximum ages are for player characters. Most people in the world at large die from pestilence, accidents, infections or violence before getting to venerable age.
Choose your character’s height and weight from the ranges mentioned in the appropriate race description or from the ranges found on Table: Height and Weight. Think about what your character’s abilities might say about his or her height and weight. A weak but agile character may be thin. A strong and tough character may be tall or just heavy.
Alternatively, roll randomly for your character’s height and weight on Table: Height and Weight. The dice roll given in the Height Modifier column determines the character’s extra height beyond the base height. That same number multiplied by the dice roll or quantity given in the Weight Modifier column determines the character’s extra weight beyond the base weight.
| Gender | Base Height | Height Modifier | Base Weight | Weight Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 4’ 10" | +2d10 (5’ 0"—6’ 6") | 120 lbs. | ×2d4 (124—280 lbs.) |
| Female | 4’ 5" | +2d10 (4’ 7"—6’ 1") | 85 lbs. | ×2d4 (89—245 lbs.) |
Source: Planar Handbook (Page 18)