Cat (Action)

Cats encompass a variety of human/feline hybrids, from house cats to lynx, ocelots and panthers. The Lion and Tiger are separate races.

Alternate Names: Cats, Cat-People, Rakasta, Tabaxi.

Attributes and Schticks

Body: 4-9
Mind: 5-10
Reflexes: 6-12
Move: 6

Grace

Basic Action

Grace is a variant of Sneak where you become supernaturally light and can move in places where you normally could not. You do not actually need to Sneak in order to use Grace, but you still move only at normal pace and cannot take other actions. You can walk along any surface, even one that could not carry your weight, a distance equal to your Move. You are not deterred by vertical surfaces, narrow ledges, slack ropes and can even walk along a thin thread, spider web, or on soft snow. You still need to use Free Running, but ignore difficulties based on the narrowness of your path, the weight your path can support, and the inclination of the surface. You cannot walk on inverted or liquid surfaces. This can be used to make you hard to spot because you are in positions where nobody would think to look for you, so you are assumed to have concealment enough to Sneak as long as you can stay above your prey or otherwise in a blind spot they would not normally look. After this action, you can stand still in a position that could not normally support you for the rest of the round, but must use Grace again if you wish to continue moving in such terrain.

Play

Trigger Action (Combo)

You can mix social and physical interactions. When you succeed on a Charm, Impress, or Melee roll against a single creature you are adjacent to, you can use this schtick to immediately make an opposed roll using another of these three skills: an opposed Charm or Impress roll or Melee roll against Dodge. If you succeed the target loses 3 shots.

Pounce

Basic Action

Make a great leap of up to your Move in meters with an optional Normal Melee Attack at the end. This is in addition to the normal movement for a Basic Action, but you cannot move after the leap.

Description

Stealthy killers with kittenish charm; it is hard to place cats.

Appearance

A cat is slightly smaller than a human, furred, tailed, and with a pronounced cat face. Details of pattern and face vary greatly; some Cats take after house cats, other are more feral.

Role

Cats are proud and individualistic creatures. They tend to be hangers-on rather than true members of any group, rarely bothering to discuss group policy, instead slipping away quietly if things are not to their liking. They don't take orders well, but have good initiative and carry their own weight. They respect physical prowess, and a group made up mainly of Cats generally has a physically strong leader that dictates policy and keep underlings in line through physical charisma.

Politics

Cats rarely have political bodies stable enough to affect politics. When they do, they tend to be warrior tribes or formal warrior societies driven by face and honor. Loyalty is not a natural trait in a Cat, and policies change on a whim.

Integration

Individual Cats integrate well with most other races. They have trouble with the excessively hidebound, like dwarfs, but are otherwise charming enough and clever enough to be tolerated almost everywhere, but remain strangers at heart. That is good enough for them; cats don't generally want to be fully integrated.

Family

Cat's don't make strong families. Females mate with whoever they choose, usually preferring strong toms. They give birth to litters of very small kittens that grow quickly; a cat is capable of caring for itself by age six tough they take the same time as humans to fully mature. Kittens are adorable, and are often adopted by someone other than the mother early in life.