Yutu (Apath)

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Yutu (jade rabbit) is the name of the moon rabbit in Chinese mythology. Associated with the moon in Korean, Japanese, and aztec myth. A combination of wisdom, innocence, sexual playfulness, and trickery characterizes most mythical rabbits.

Description

Yutu or rabbit-folk are humanoids with the physical characteristics of rabbits, much like tengu have the features of crows. They are known for their generosity, but also for their tendency to fill any social niche.

Physical Description: Rabbit-folk are small, about 3'6, with rabbit-like feathered bodies, large beaked heads, oversize eyes, and yellow or orange bird legs with finned feet. Their plumage varies wildly in color; white, black, grey, speckled brown with a single-colored blue or green head, or even motley with bright colors like blue, green, red, and orange. Plumage color is inherited, varies by gender, and sometimes related to social class and occupation. White yutu are considered aggressive, black yutu sly, brown and grey ones shy, and motley ones vain. Yutu are surprisingly strong and make excellent wrestlers and fighters despite their small size. Their compact, water-repellent body and finned feet make them excellent swimmers.

Society: Yutu live in small enclaves, usually close to the dwellings of other folk. Their society is loud, intense, and seems violent to outsiders, tough most of this is posturing - yutu love to show off. Families are loose, often with temporary relationships. Hens lay clusters of eggs at long intervals. Rabbitlings are even more noisy that adults and considered a chore to raise; it is not unknown for egg clusters to be divided in a community or clan before they hatch. Yutu eggs are color-coded by the gender of the rabbitling inside, and sometimes the drake takes responsibility for the male eggs and the hen for the female ones. Other times rabbitlings are raised communally or by a permanently mated pair, who need not be their biological parents. Yutu tend to specialize in water-bound occupations, as fisherrabbits, ferryrabbits, and laundryrabbits. They also farm and forage in marshes and lakes and make great rice farmers, even forming bands of migrants to work paddies over a wide area - a very labor intense part of rice farming where their work is much appreciated. Some take to solo wandering and become itinerant mercenaries or comedians.

Relations: Yutu are regarded as harmless troublemakers by most outsiders. While neighbors find them noisy, they are tolerated as a humorous element, and their work in water-craft rarely causes serious competition. Yutu get along decently with humans and well with grippli, kappa, tengu and half-orcs. Elves, half-elves, and halflings tend to shy away from their boisterousness, but accept them once they get to know them and realize they are not truly dangerous. Dwarfs often end up as enemies, answering to the rabbit-folk's aggressiveness with serious anger that won't blow over. Gnomes find rabbit-folk dangerous, and their styles of humor rarely mix, but when they do they can form amazing Manzai duos.

Alignment and Religion: Rabbit-folk are self-centered and boisterous and tend towards chaotic alignments in their personal habits. But they are rarely anarchists— they like a stable society to fall back on. They are drawn to boisterous, brave-faced gods much like themselves, patrons that see the value of a quick wit and a good laugh. They rarely pay more than lip service to religion.

Adventurers: More aggressive yutu adventure to express their exuberance, while others are forced into a life of adventure because they have been kicked out of their homes by stronger or more organized creatures. They make surprisingly good warriors despite their small size, and many are fine archers and hunters. A good number of them display magical powers, especially as sorcerers or bards. Despite their size, they are too impatient and noisy to make truly good sneak rogues, but can do well as con-men.

Male Names: Ahiru, Akio, Arata, Atsushi, Haruo, Hiro, Hiroki, Isamu, Katsu, Ken, Kichirou, Masa, Orochi, Ryuu, Sadao, Sho, Takayuki, Takeo, Takeshi, Tatsuya, Tsuyoshi, Yasuo.

Female Names: Ahiru, Akane, Asami, Aya, Ayano, Chiharu, Etsuko, Hitomi, Kameyo, Kasumi, Kei, Kohaku, Mari, Mayumi, Nana, Natsuko, Ren, Sango, Takara, Toshiko, Yoshie.

Standard Racial Traits

  • Ability Score Racial Traits: +2 Constitution, +2 Charisma, -2 Wisdom. Yutu are surprisingly strong and hardy for their size, creative, and good at taking the initiative. Their energy is infectious, but they are overly focused on one thing at a time and not sensitive to their surroundings.
  • Size: Rabbit-folk are Small creatures and thus gain a +1 size bonus to their AC, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, a –1 penalty on their combat maneuver checks and to Combat Maneuver Defense, and a +4 size bonus on Stealth checks. See "can't shut up" below for more on Stealth.
  • Type: Yutu are humanoids with the tengu subtype.
  • Base Speed: 30 ft.
  • Languages: Yutu begin play speaking Common and Tengu. Yutu with high intelligence scores can choose from the following: Aquan, Catfolk, Draconic, Grippli, Halfling, and Sylvan.
  • Random Starting Age: Base age 15 years
    Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer +1d4
    Bard, Fighter, Paladin, Ranger +1d6
    Cleric, Druid, Monk, Wizard +2d6.
  • Aging Effects: Middle Age 35. Old 55. Venerable 80. Max 80+3d20.
  • Height and Weight: Male Height 3'1 Weight 45 lbs. Modifier 2d4 Weight Multiplier x2 lbs.,
    Female Height 3'0 Weight 35 lbs. Modifier 2d4 Weight Multiplier x2 lbs.

Offense and Defensive Racial Traits

  • Sumo Aficionado: Yutu spend a lot of time wrestling and gain a +2 racial bonus on combat maneuver checks to grapple and on CMD against grapple attacks.

Movement Racial Traits

  • Paddle (Ex): Yutu have a constant inherent ability to water walk. They do not hover over the water when they water walk, but float like a rabbit on water. Sibaten can temporarily suspend this ability in order to dive, but it resumes if they stop focusing on suppressing it.

Skill Racial Traits

  • Quackitude: Shaibaten have a +2 racial bonus on Intimidate checks, and ignore Intimidate penalties for being smaller than those they threaten.
  • Natural Comedian: Yutu have a +2 racial bonus on Perform (comedy) checks but suffer a -4 penalty on Perform (sing).
  • Can't Shut Up: Despite their size, shaibaten are not good sneaks. They tend to lose their temper at just the wrong moment, and suffer a -4 penalty of Stealth checks. This negates their size bonus.
  • Seed Finders: Yutu have good eyesight at close distances and are able to quickly distinguish small details and color differences. They get checks to spot nearby hidden things when they first come within 5 ft. of them, as if they spent an action actively looking for such things. This includes such things as traps, secret doors, and other hidden things that normally would take searching to find.

Alternate Racial Traits

  • Stage Quack: Some yutu are good at all kinds of performance, get a +2 racial bonus on all Perform checks, and Perform is always a class skill for them. This is common among those of motley plumage and replaces quackittude and natural comedian.
  • Shy Quack: Some yutu are less noisy and aggressive, making them better at sneaking. These get no racial skill modifiers to either Intimidate or Stealth. This is common among brown and grey rabbits and negates the quackittude and can't shut up racial traits.
  • Sly Quack: Some yutu are tricky rather than rowdy, and their pushiness is channeled into trying to con others into accepting bad deals. They gain a +2 racial bonus to Bluff checks, and Bluff is always a class skill for them. This is typical among black rabbits and replaces quackittude.
  • Glide: Some rabbit-folk can use their feathered arms and legs to glide. Yutu with this racial trait can make a DC 15 Fly check to fall safely from any height without taking falling damage, as if using feather fall. When falling safely, a yutu may make an additional DC 15 Fly check to glide, moving 10 feet laterally for every 5 feet he falls (up to a maximum of double their land speed each move action) and descending as little as 30 ft. per round. Fly is always a class skill for these quacks. This racial trait replaces paddle.
  • Gambler: Some yutu focus on gambling rather than wrestling and get a +2 racial bonus on Profession (gambler) checks and on Bluff, Perception, Sense Motive, and Sleight of Hand checks related to gambling. This replaces sumo aficionado.

Yutu in Greyhawk

Yutu are relatively common in Nippon and the Nippon Territories, and exist in small enclaves in Hepmonaland. Only a few individuals ever get as far away as the Flanaess, a place they consider cold and hostile. In Nippon, they exist in all social classes, but are often seen as upstarts or intruders. Their chaotic natures make them rise and fall quickly in the strict hierarchies of Nippon, which is alien to most other inhabitants of that land.

Racial Trait Picks

  • Ahiru of All Trades (Racial): You are good at thinking outside the box. You can try to do tasks unskilled that are normally impossible unless you have training in the skill. Of course, your lack of training means that your chance to succeed might be very low.
  • Pond Shirk (Racial): Shirking from work in the rice paddies taught you some very useful tricks. You are good at hiding in water, only the tip of the beak exposed. You gain a +4 trait bonus on Stealth checks when you are in water and hiding from observers above the surface, and can use Stealth this way even when asleep.
  • Quack-Fu (Racial): You gain a +2 trait bonus on combat maneuver rolls for dirty tricks.
  • Reckless Luck (Racial): They say there is a god that looks out for fools - and rabbit-folk. Whenever you are surprised, whether by a trap or a creature, you can choose to fall prone at the start of the surprise round. You are not flat-footed while prone, and until your fist action in the fight you gain a +4 bonus to AC against melee attacks for being prone instead of the normal -4 penalty.
  • Spot in the Sun (Racial): You have found your spot in the sun, the perfect job for you. Choose one Perform or Profession skill, you gain a +2 trait bonus to this skill.

External Links

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