Sandling Sentinels

Found in death, cursed with life

Authored by phanaton (GoblinPhysics)

"The Sentinels? They're an accursed lot, thought it's by no fault of their own. They just died at the wrong time, in the wrong place, or wound up where they shouldn't have been when it happens. The Demon Storms, see, they're one of the things that makes this land such a grind stone, get caught up in one of those and you're more likely to come out an empty minded, slaughtering and slaying thrall of The Demon itself. The Storms curse them, and they lose most of themselves, and the lucky ones are what you call Sentinels, they're the ones that still keep parts of themselves. Can't say I hate them, though everyone is more likely to lynch 'em than like them, lots of bad blood from the slaughtering ones I just told you about."

Sandling Sentinels are a form of undead and somewhat demonic life that exists solely in the desert lands of Dasht-e Zerrin. Born from the bodies and cadavers of mortals that fell and died in the desert, Demon Storms reanimate and resurrect their bodies as sand skinned pariahs. Losing the entirety of their memories up to the five years prior to their resurrection, most are broken and amnesiac, wandering in a pitiful and lost daze. Unlike the majority of other Sandlings, Sentinels are more of a classification than a type, as Sentinels can be any size, from Sandling Imp to Sandling Goliath. The classification of them as "Sentinels" stemming from the fact that they retain their self awareness and personalities from before death, unlike the many others that come out of the Demon Storms as murderous fiends and monsters.
Unfortunately, due to the stigma surrounding their genesis, and the natures of the vast majority of Sandlings, Sentinels are often victimized and treated violently by the still living races. Living in the impoverished slums and corruption ridden underbellies and sewers of the cities they find themselves in, theirs is a harsh life that usually ends at the end of a particularly wrathful individuals blade. And it is a rare thing indeed for any Sentinel to find peace, or community among the living, let alone any kind of relationship beyond the antagonistic.

Basic Information

Anatomy

The anatomy of Sandling Sentinels is often a bizarre and abstract thing, as all Sandling Sentinels stem originally from members of the other intelligent races of Dasht-e Zerrin. The few opportunities that researchers and scholars have had to study the internals of Sentinels, have always shown the same alterations. The entirety of their organ system has petrified, and their cardiovascular system emaciated and calcified, rendering all organ systems effectively useless. Continuing with their oddities, all Sentinels are, depending on the Sentinel in question and their opinion, blessed or cursed with what is unofficially referred to as a 'mutation'. These curious alterations are unique unto each Sentinel, and no two share the same mutation, these mutations varying between an extra limb, acidic fluids stored in their petrified organs, or complete and total changes to morphology, rendering them even more monstrous.
Additionally, the entirety of their skin and flesh is a sandstone like material that holds itself together by no other explanation than magic. And Sentinels are capable of healing only by submerging themselves in desert sands and allowing the magic that animates them to form a new limb in lieu of the lost one. Finally, on expiration, when Sentinels or any other Sandling die, they disintegrate into piles of sand, leaving only their petrified organs and glowing, crystallized heart that still beats, undoubtedly by some accursed magic of The Demon.
Water is able to destabilize them if exposed for too long, and if consumed, it would taste as if a normal mortal willingly drank acid.

Genetics and Reproduction

Sentinels are incapable of reproduction with any race, as they exist in a strange state as something akin to demons and undead both. For reproduction, Sentinels are only created when mostly intact bodies, or living mortals of any age are caught amidst the freak supernatural weather known as Demon Storms. Though some Sentinels of a particularly vicious disposition, will sometimes kidnap and steal away mortals, and forcefully subject them to the Demon Storms.

Ecology and Habitats

Sentinels live all across the breadth of Dasht-e Zerrin, known among every race as warped terrors that stalk the sands, existing as bandits, murderers, and monsters. There is no clear ecology to them, although the density of encountering them gets notably more frequent the closer that people get to the Southern areas of the Desert.

Additional Information

Uses, Products & Exploitation

Demon Cores

Once a Sandling is killed, there is a chance to find a Demon Core, a crystal-like amalgamation of what is left of that creature's soul- Sandling Sentinels are no exception.
These cores can be purified and worked with to produce such curious sources of energy, the perfect catalyst to finish potions, and even make creams to reinvigorate the individual.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Sentinels have the same expected senses of sight, hearing, and smell, that their original race would have possessed.

Taste

Though upon transformation, they almost entirely lose the ability to taste. The fine nerves and tastebuds that once brought the texture of meals to their mind have faded to a buzzing static.

Touch

Sandlings also find their sense of touch extremely dulled. Curiously, their sense of touch seems to be temporarily reinvigorated when the touching area of the body is covered in blood, something of a taboo magical phenomenon.

Civilization and Culture

Relationship Ideals

To most sapient Sentinels, merely existing without conflict is a goal, particularly due to their ostracized natures and frequently segregated lives towards the other mortal races. Although rare, it is not impossible for Sentinels to form relationships, from platonic friendships, oaths of honorable servitude, to even more rarely, a non-sexual romance.

History

Sandling Sentinels possess no history, as they are only born from the mortals of Dasht caught out in the freak Demon Storms.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Towards all other intelligent species, The Sentinels are spat upon and kicked aside at the best of times, lynched and slaughtered at the best of times. More due to their races origin, and frequent nature as twisted servants of The Demon, born from its own ravaging Demon Storms. There is little comfort and warmth in the new life of a Sandling, and is more often than not a tumultuous existence, nomadic, as they journey and venture to find any sort of fleeting peace.

How others might see you-

• You're a creature born of an ill fated encounter, that you had no control over, so you must be unlucky, you should be avoided.
• The majority of your kind don't hold on to their minds when they're transformed, becoming unfeeling drones of mass slaughter, you're no different.
• You're spit upon, disgusting, and shouldn't exist in the first place, nobody cares for a Sandling, intelligent or otherwise.

How you might see others-

• Trust is an unnecessary risk, why should you put yourself out there to defend or trust anyone when everyone hates what you are?
• Their mistrust and hatred is well deserved, your kind was never meant to coexist, but that just means killing them doesn't inspire pity.
• Yes, they hate you and what you are, but you know the horrors of your kind better than anyone else, and you wouldn't wish this fate on your worst enemy, all life is sacred and to be protected, there's a reason you're a Sentinel after all.

Why you might have become a Strider-

• Actions speak louder than words, so you endeavored to prove yourself worthy of respect and adulation irrespective of what you've become, fame and riches will wash away the filth of what you are.
• Killing indiscriminately would just make you a target, so you've turned your hatred of the living towards more constructive outlets, the money is just a bonus, you're in it for the blood.
• Everyone has to make a living, your newly acquired undeath is just a distraction with new obstacles born as a result.

Origin/Ancestry

The corpses of all other races, or on occasion the living, when caught in the supernatural Demon Storms.

Tips and Reminders for Sentinels

A Song Difficult to Resist

Whenever a Sandling Sentinel travels to areas still affected by the ruinous essence, such as the Fiendish Ruins, they have to make a check to retain their mind. In Fantasy AGE, this is a Willpower (Self-Discipline) test. The difficulty of the Test depends on the area, and the actions of the Sentinel in question. 
 LOSING THIS TEST, WILL DRIVE THE SENTINEL MAD, CAUSING THEM TO ATTACK THEIR CLOSEST ALLIES. IF THERE ARE NO ALLIES TO ATTACK, THE SENTINEL BECOMES UNCONTROLLABLE FOR 2d6 HOURS; IT IS UP TO THE GAME MASTER TO DETERMINE WHAT HAPPENED IN THAT TIME PERIOD. 

A Dull Joy

Normal Alcohols, Drugs, and other means of highs, are inaccessible to the Sandling Sentinel. Bathing in Blood is able to satiate this need, with the probable possibility of growing addicted to bathing in blood. 

Memory not so long gone

There are rumors that there are curious items that can restore a Sandling Sentinel's Memory.

Sandling Sentinel Racial Table: AGE

• add 1 to your Constitution Ability


• Pick one of the following ability focuses: Willpower (Self-discipline), Strength (Might)


• Your Speed is equal to 30+(dexterity*3) feet (minus armor penalty if applicable)
  
  When you are splashed with water, half your speed, or risk-taking 6 damage per round of full movement.


• You can speak Your original races’ and the Common tongue [Dasht-e]


• Pick two Benefits from your original race’s benefits.

Positive Energy, the usual means of healing, actually harms Sandling Sentinels. Even Normal Potions - those without Demon's Blood in it- can harm a Sandling Sentinel.
Other types of Magic however, such as Death Arcana, and Earth Arcana- heals Sandlings.

Sandlings can recover from lopped-off limbs, by spending time in the Sands, passively regenerating their form. - They cannot use this to heal during combat, even in the sandiest of dunes.
Every Hour in the Sands, they can regenerate 1d3+Con Health. This healing is interrupted if they are splashed with Water at all.
Having Constitution (Stamina), can turn this to 1d6+Con+1 Health.