Kinain (Greyhawk)

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Kinain or fey-touched are humanoids with some traits of fey and fairy, living lives halfway between this world and that of the fey. Sometimes confused with changelings, they share many of the same traits, but are only rarely the result of an exchange of children. Like changelings, they grow up among people that are both similar and different from themselves.

Description

Every kinain has a dual heritage, as both a fey and a mundane humanoid. All kinain have a trace of the wonder and mystery of fairy about them, but in the immediate and obvious ways they are the same as their parent race. Their humanoid parentage determine the kinain's looks, mannerisms, upbringing, and culture. But there is always something more to a kinain, a subtle quality of inspiration or even madness.

Background: Influenced by fairy and the fey, some kinain have a fey heritage, often generations back. But a blood tie is not necessary, just living in close proximity to fey, or even attending a fairy gathering can be enough to turn an ordinary child into a kinain. Fey sometimes renounce their nature and take on mortal guise, often to enter into marriage. This can turn a fey into a kinain, tough this may require a quest or a bargain with a powerful fey creature. Still, kinain are rare; most touched by fairy remain as they are. Kinain propagate as their parent race does, and most offspring will be mundane.

Parent Race: All kinain strongly resemble members of a humanoid race, and most grew up surrounded and nurtured by that race. This means that many of the physical and social characteristics of kinain are variable, depending on their background and upbringing. Kinain exist only around races that are not themselves magical; no kinain are ever born among gnomes, kitsune, or any of the races associated with a plane other than the mundane world. It is speculated that the magic of the fey manifests in such a race's inherent magic and does not express itself as being fey-touched; all these races are already plane-touched in their own way. Neither do kianin appear among the giants or mongrel races such as mongrelmen, half-elves, or half-orcs, the reason for this is open to speculation.

Physical Description: Kinain appear as their parent race, but often manifest extremes of appearance. They are generally slim for their race. Hair, skin, and eye color are often bright and contrasting, as if their entire being was more saturated, but can also be a bright white or lustrously black. All kinain have at least one physical characteristic unusual for their parent race, this can range from vestigial horns, fangs, claws, or tail to furred ears, an unusual number of toes or fingers, or radically differently colored eyes, hair stripes, or patches of skin.

Society: Kinain make their living among their parent race, and might not even know what they are. They usually end up in social or creative roles, as artisans, performers, or waiters. Their personalities make them liked, but rarely respected. Sometimes they are persecuted for their oddities and forced to live as wanderers or on the fringe of society. When kinain meet fey, they feel an instinctive sense of kinship, but also longing and alienation; an entire new world just became visible, but unreachable, as if behind glass.

Relations: Kinain are regarded as members of their parent race in almost all circumstances and share the same relations with other races. They are generally more open with outsiders, but this is not always reciprocated, especially for kinain of a more taciturn parent race; outsiders are naturally suspicious of an overly loquacious dwarf or friendly hobgoblin.

Alignment and Religion: Kinain share the outlook of their parent race, but tend to be free-thinkers and are rarely of lawful alignment. This obviously creates tensions for kinain raised in highly structured societies. Few kinain are religious, some are lay people or hangers on in religious institutions. Kinain who know their heritage sometimes align themselves with the eldest of fairy, this is usually more idol-worship than faith.

Adventurers: Not truly at home among their adopted people, kinain often become adventurers, forever searching for something indefinable. Their force of personality and open outlook makes it easy for them to be accepted and accept companions of any race, even ones their parent race might have problems with. Kinain with a parentage of barbaric or cruel races like gnolls and orcs have a better chance of being accepted than regular members of those races. But kinain have an otherworldly aspect to their personality, that might conflict with a team set on money and worldly goals.

Names: As their parent race. Kinain sometimes take a new name for themselves if they go wandering or adventuring, and such names tend to reflect how they see themselves. The names of animals and natural phenomena are common, such as flame, fox, hawk, star, or weasel.

Standard Racial Traits

  • Ability Score Racial Traits: Kinain are charming and intelligent but less powerful than most humanoids. They gain a +2 racial bonus to Intelligence and Charisma and suffer a -2 penalty to Strength.
  • Size: Kinain share the size and effects of size of their parent race.
  • Type: Kinain have dual creature types. They are humanoids of their parent race's subtype, but also have the fey type. Any effect that targets either humanoids (of their parent's subtype) or fey work on kinain.
  • Base Speed: 30 ft.
  • Languages: Kinain begin play speaking Common and the language of their parent race (if any). Kinain with high intelligence scores can choose the languages of their parent race, and gain these additional options: aklo, fairy common, sylvan. The kinain may not ever have spoken these languages, suddenly finding that they can understand a seemingly foreign tongue.
  • Random Starting Age: As their parent race.
  • Aging Effects: As their parent race. A kinain that reaches maximum age either dies, or mysteriously leaves for the fey realms, in either case never to be seen again in their current identity.
  • Height and Weight: As their parent race. Kinain tend towards extremes, being slim and either short or tall. If determining height and weight randomly, roll twice for height and take the most extreme result and roll twice for weight and take the lower roll.

Senses Racial Traits

  • Low-Light Vision: Kinain can see twice as far as humans in conditions of dim light.

Skill Racial Traits

  • Parental Camouflage: Kinain get a +4 racial bonus on Disguise checks to imitate their parent race. In most cases a kinain need not make Disguise checks to disguise themselves as their parent race and not otherwise disguised, it is only needed if if onlookers are particularly suspicious, such as in a witch-hunt.
  • Allure: Kinain are alluring, creative, and witty, giving them a +2 racial bonus on Bluff checks.

Other Racial Traits

  • Fey Blood: Kinain count as both humanoids of their parent race and fey for any effect related to race and type.
  • Parent Inheritance: Kianin look and behave much as their parent race and share some of their racial abilities. The following parent races are the most common, but others are certainly possible. Kinain are never related to giants, half-races, or magical races like gnomes, kitsune, or planetouched. Kinain inherit the listed racial traits of their parent race.

Weakness Racial Traits

  • Cold Iron Sensitivity: Kinain are uncomfortable around cold iron. When carrying or in contact with cold iron, they are sickened and must make a Disguise check each round to maintain their role if they are disguised as a non-fey. When hit by a cold iron weapon, kinain must make a Fortitude save (DC 15) or suffer as above, with a new saving throw allowed each round to break the condition.

Alternate Racial Traits

  • Fey Damage Resistance The kinain gains DR 5/cold iron. This replaces parent inheritance.
  • Resist Fey The kinain gains a +4 bonus on saving throws against the spell-like and supernatural abilities of fey. This replaces allure.
  • Unseelie Heritage: The kinain has luminescent eyes, less instead of more color that usual for the parent race, and gains darkvision. This replaces low-light vision and parental camouflage. This makes the kinain stand out more among her parent race.
  • Fey Pranks: The kinain is gaunt and fey-like and a stranger among to the parent race. The kinain can use jump (sp) twice per day and selective invisibility (sp) once per day, with a caster level equal to their Hit Dice. This replaces parent race and parental camouflage.
  • Second Sight (Sp) As a full-round action, the kinain gains the benefits of see invisibility (sp) for one round. This replaces allure and parental camouflage. The kinain is seen as otherworldly and strange among her parent race.
  • Terrain Affinity Select one terrain from the ranger's list of favored terrains. A kinain in this terrain may move through difficult terrain that normally costs double the normal movement cost at her normal speed. Areas that cost more than double or that have been magically manipulated to impede motion, however, still have their normal effect. This replaces allure.
  • Throwback: Some kinain are more obviously marked by their fey heritage. They gain one of the following primary natural attacks: bite (1d4/1d3 Small), gore (1d4/1d3), tail slap (d4/d3) or two claws (1d3/1d2). This replaces parental camouflage. The kinain is clearly an oddity and often cast out from her parent race.

Traits

Artistic Select one Craft or Perform skill, you gain a +2 trait bonus on that skill.
Changeling: At least a part of your upbringing have been among the fey. You can use dancing lights (sp) three times per day with a caster level equal to your Hit Dice.
Invisible Friend You have a friend that only you can see. By spending a full-round action talking to your invisible friend, you can reroll a failed Knowledge check you made in the last minute. You can only reroll each check once. Others can hear your side of the conversation, but your invisible friend is completely intangible and imperceptible to others.
Outcast You were cast out from your birthplace and feel reserved around your parent race. You suffer a -4 penalty on Diplomacy checks against members of your parent race, but gain a +2 trait bonus on Stealth and both Stealth and Survival are class skills for you.
Wanderer You have spent a lot of time alone as a wanderer from place to place. You gain Survival as a class skill, and a +1 trait bonus on Survival checks.

Kinain in Greyhawk

Kinain are rare but exist anywhere the world of the fey is close. Because of the closeness to fairy in northern Flaness, they are less rare in that area. They have become almost common in the trail of the elven invasion of the Lendore Isles. Kinain have no culture of their own, living among their parent race. When discovered for what they are, they often become outcasts and wanderers. The few kinain living openly in the Celestial Empire are given some measure of honor or even worship.

Advance Race Guide Design Points

Type: Humanoid and Fey 2
Ability Scores: Specialized 1
Parental Camouflage 1
Allure 2
Fey blood 0
Parental race 2-4
Languages: Standard 0
Low-light vision 1
Cold-iron sensitivity -2


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