Goliath

For more information on all races, see: Races

At the highest mountain peaks—far above the slopes where trees grow and where the air is thin and the frigid winds howl—dwell the reclusive goliaths. Few folk can claim to have seen a goliath, and fewer still can claim friendship with them. Goliaths wander a bleak realm of rock, wind, and cold. Their bodies look as if they are carved from mountain stone and give them great physical power. Their spirits take after the wandering wind, making them nomads who wander from peak to peak. Their hearts are infused with the cold regard of their frigid realm, leaving each goliath with the responsibility to earn a place in the tribe or die trying.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Goliaths are massive, averaging between 7 to 8 feet tall, making them even taller than dragonborn and half-orcs. They have noticeably bony or prominent supraorbital ridges above their eyes. Goliath eyes are often a bright blue or green and sometimes glow a little. Their skin is often gray or brown and extremely tough (often compared to stone). One of the most distinctive features of the goliath is the darker (often vertically symmetrical) patches of skin that cover their entire bodies. Goliaths believe that these markings somehow explain or control their fate or destiny. For this reason, goliaths never tattoo themselves as this could affect their future. Goliath skin is littered with bony growths called "lithoderms". These growths are roughly the size of a coin and appear like studded pebbles on their arms, shoulders, torso or head.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Goliaths' most notable characteristic is their competitiveness. They keep track of their accomplishments and see everything as a challenge. Those not familiar with goliath psychology often get annoyed when goliaths constantly remind them how many times a certain thing had happened, thinking them arrogant or self-centered. This is not the case however. To goliaths, score-keeping is a natural and integral part of life, not meant to belittle or demean anyone. But a goliath's most fierce competitor is themselves. Beating their own records is the most satisfying victory for a goliath. Goliaths love to win, but they see defeat as a prod to improve their skills. They are also competitive with their companions and other goliaths, but are never arrogant or cocky.
Goliaths have little time for cheaters, gloaters, and sore losers. Goliaths never hold grudges if they lose a fair fight, and often repeat the goliath maxim that "Today's rival is tomorrow's teammate". For goliaths, competition exists only when it is supported by a level playing field. Competition measures talent, dedication, and effort. Those factors determine survival in their home territory, not reliance on magic items, money, or other elements that can tip the balance one way or the other. Goliaths happily rely on such benefits, but they are careful to remember that such an advantage can always be lost. A goliath who relies too much on them can grow complacent, a recipe for disaster in the mountains. Complacency is a trait that goliaths loathe and as a result they never take anything for granted. Even goliaths with magical advantages continue to train their physical prowess in case they ever lose their power.
Their constant comparison to their past accomplishments can be hard on goliaths that fail to meet goals or measure up to achievements of the past. Goliaths often feel dissatisfied with anything that does not surpass a victory from their past. This unfortunate element of goliath psychology leads many older goliaths to be very unhappy with themselves when they can no longer perform as well as they could in their youth. It is rare for goliath adventurers to retire or live to an old age, as they often die trying to surpass their previous achievements. Permanently injured or aging goliaths often seek death in battle rather than succumb to an existence where they cannot excel.
Trust and honor are the key aspects of most goliaths. This tradition of honor and trust means that goliaths tend to be good overall. This combined with their competitive nature often leads goliaths to valorous heroics. Goliaths are also notably daring and fearless. Feats of physical strength and agility, like jumping chasms or climbing cliffs, hold no fear for goliaths. Goliaths are naturally curious beings and love to explore.
Every day brings a new challenge to a goliath. Food, water, and shelter are rare in the uppermost mountain reaches. A single mistake can bring doom to an entire tribe, while an individual's heroic effort can ensure the entire group's survival. Goliaths thus place a premium on self-sufficiency and individual skill. Among goliaths, any adult who can't contribute to the tribe is expelled. A lone goliath has little chance of survival, especially an older or weaker one. Goliaths have little pity for adults who can't take care of themselves, though a sick or injured individual is treated, as a result of the goliath concept of fair play. A permanently injured goliath is still expected to pull his or her weight in the tribe. Typically, such a goliath dies attempting to keep up, or the goliath slips away in the night to seek the cold will of fate.
In some ways, the goliath drive to outdo themselves feeds into the grim inevitability of their decline and death. A goliath would much rather die in battle, at the peak of strength and skill, than endure the slow decay of old age. Few folk have ever meet an elderly goliath, and even those goliaths who have left their people grapple with the urge to give up their lives as their physical skills decay. Because of their risk-taking, goliath tribes suffer from a chronic lack of the experience offered by longterm leaders. They hope for innate wisdom in their leadership, for they can rarely count on a wisdom grown with age.
Goliaths live in small tribes that number between forty and sixty goliaths. This is usually made up of three to five extended families. Most goliaths live in the same tribe their entire life. On rare occasions, a tribe that gets too large splits into smaller tribes or smaller tribes merge together. Tribe chieftains only maintain power as long as they can prove they are suitable for that role. As a result, leadership constantly changes. New leaders are chosen by contests. Any goliath can challenge the chieftain in an attempt to replace them. If this happens, the chieftain and the challenger compete in three tasks. The challenger has to win all three to become the new chieftain. The old chieftain then leaves the tribe permanently.
The competitive nature of goliaths means that the attitude and achievements of one quickly inspire the whole tribe. Individuals within tribes constantly try to outdo each other's good deeds. This means that nearby settlements often stereotype goliaths as a heroic and good people.
The cultures and traditions of goliath tribes vary from tribe to tribe and region to region but a number of traits are common across several tribes. Arts and crafting in goliath culture are limited by the resources they have at hand in the mountains. As a result, goliaths are skilled in crafts like flintknapping, tanning, stitching, creating simple pottery, bone-carving, and painting. Goliath art is often colorful and expressive. Art is one of the few things that goliaths understand to be non-competitive; they fully appreciate that art cannot have a winner. Goliaths believe that art should be used to show people something they couldn't see in the real world. Goliaths decorate their tents, caves, weapons, and clothes with abstract designs (often jagged, parallel lines and symbols that have astronomical significance).
Considering their competitive nature, it's not surprising that sports are often played by goliaths to improve their physical skills and pass time. Simple games include climbing, sprinting, and wrestling. Other games that were popular amongst many tribes include goat-ball, stubborn-root, and cliff-climb. Goat-ball involves the use of a stuffed goat hide, which is tossed around by two teams (usually four a side). The two teams jump around on several raised platforms (usually rocks or logs) trying to pass, intercept, and hit each other with the goat-ball. Any participants that are hit by the goat-ball are out of the game. Participants who fall or are knocked from their platform are also out. One team loses once all their players are out. In stubborn-root, one goliath is chosen to be the "root" and has to defend a ridge or peak from the other competitors (similar to king of the mountain played by children in towns and cities). Finally, cliff-climb is a simple cliff-climbing race. Most races involve climbing up a cliff and then climbing back down. Participants can choose to fall part of the way on the return climb to save time, but risk injuring themselves. The winner is often the best of three races. Particularly skilled climbers often handicap themselves by wearing backpacks full of stones.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

Every goliath has three names: a birth name assigned by the newborn's mother and father, a nickname assigned by the tribal chief, and a family or clan name. A birth name is up to three syllables long. Clan names are five syllables or more and end in a vowel. Birth names are rarely linked to gender. Goliaths see females and males as equal in all things, and they find societies with roles divided by gender to be puzzling or worthy of mockery. To a goliath, the person who is best at a job should be the one tasked with doing it. A goliath's nickname is a description that can change on the whim of a chieftain or tribal elder. It refers to a notable deed, either a success or failure, committed by the goliath. Goliaths assign and use nicknames with their friends of other races, and change them to refer to an individual's notable deeds. Goliaths present all three names when identifying themselves, in the order of birth name, nickname, and clan name. In casual conversation, they use their nickname.

Birth Names: Aukan, Eglath, Gae-Al, Gauthak, Ilikan, Keothi, Kuori, Lo-Kag, Manneo, Maveith, Nalla, Orilo, Paavu, Pethani, Thalai, Thotham, Uthal, Vaunea, Vimak.

Nicknames: Bearkiller, Dawncaller, Fearless, Flintfinder, Horncarver, Keeneye, Lonehunter, Longleaper, Rootsmasher, Skywatcher, Steadyhand, Threadtwister, Twice-Orphaned, Twistedlimb, Wordpainter.

Clan Names: Anakalathai, Elanithino, Gathakanathi, Kalagiano, Katho-Olavi, Kolae-Gileana, Ogolakanu, Thuliaga, Thunukalathi, Vaimei-Laga.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Goliaths are friendly to anyone who doesn't threaten their tribe, but don't wait around for travelers who can't keep up with them. They are particularly fond of dwarves and have great respect for dwarven blacksmiths. Some goliaths even venture into mountain tunnels to seek out dwarves to trade with. Human rangers or druids are known to sometimes work together with goliath tribes in hunts. Both the humans and goliaths mutually benefit from these temporary alliances. Goliaths often refer to oreads as their "cousins". The two races maintained a friendly rivalry. Elves are somewhat intimidating to goliaths, owing to their long lifespans. Goliaths often struggle with the idea that creatures exist that are old enough to have known their great-grandparents and ancestors. Although they have no particular hatred of goblins, orcs, or half-orcs, goliaths are wary of them. This is mostly due to the stories that they hear from passing travelers about the trouble they cause. Attitudes towards giants vary. Some tribes trade with giants. Giant weapons are not as well crafted as dwarven ones, but they are a far more suitable size. Some giants, however, try to make goliaths into slaves. This leads to conflicts and goliaths being wary of giants. Goliaths who venture out of their tribes often find issue with the class divisions found in other societies. The relationship between peasants and nobles puzzles goliaths. If a king lacks the intelligence or leadership to lead, then clearly the most talented person in the kingdom should take his place. Goliaths rarely keep such opinions to themselves, and mock folk who rely on society's structures or rules to maintain power.

Subraces

Half-Goliaths (Half-Giants)

Half-goliaths, or half-giants as they are normally called, are the children of a humanoid and a goliath. As such, they gain much of the size and physical strength of a goliath while gaining some of the versatility of the other race. Half-goliaths, while not as large as regular goliaths, are still hulking beasts. They can easily stand over 6 feet tall at 250 pounds, and are normally very muscular. Their skin tends to match that of their other parent's heritage and may have hair similar to them. However, they are much more likely to go bald as they grow older.

Below are the different possible types of half-goliath, and the racial traits they receive depending on their other parent's race:

Duergar / Dwarf

Ability Modifiers: +2 Strength, +2 Constitution, -2 Charisma.
Half-Goliath: Half-goliaths are humanoids with the goliath and dwarf subtypes. This racial trait replaces Goliath.
Goliath Blood: Half-goliaths count as both goliaths and dwarves for any effect related to race. This racial trait replaces Mountain Born.
Hardy: Half-goliaths of duergar or dwarven backgrounds receive the Hardy dwarf racial trait. This racial trait replaces Stone's Endurance.
Languages: Half-goliaths of duergar or dwarven backgrounds may choose Giant or Dwarven as their starting language in addition to Common.
Average Lifespan: 150 years
Average Height: 5 ft. 10 in. – 6 ft. 7 in.
Average Weight: 240 – 360 lbs.

Elf

See goliath half-elves on the half-elf page.

Fetchling

Ability Modifiers: +2 Strength, +2 Charisma, -2 Wisdom.
Native Outsider: Half-goliaths with fetchling backrounds are outsiders with the native subtype. This racial trait replaces Goliath.
Goliath Blood: Half-goliaths count as both goliaths and fetchlings for any effect related to race. This racial trait replaces Mountain Born.
Shadowy Resistance: Half-goliaths of fetchling backgrounds receive electricity resistance 5. This racial trait replaces Stone's Endurance.
Average Lifespan: 80 years
Average Height: 6 ft. 0 in. – 7 ft. 2 in.
Average Weight: 220 – 290 lbs.

Gnome

Ability Modifiers: +2 Constitution, +2 Charisma, -2 Wisdom.
Half-Goliath: Half-goliaths are humanoids with the goliath and gnome subtypes. This racial trait replaces Goliath.
Goliath Blood: Half-goliaths count as both goliaths and gnomes for any effect related to race. This racial trait replaces Mountain Born.
Illusion Resistance: Half-goliaths of gnomish backgrounds receive the Illusion Resistance gnome racial trait. This racial trait replaces Stone's Endurance.
Languages: Half-goliaths of gnomish backgrounds may choose Giant, Gnomish, or Sylvan as their starting language in addition to Common.
Average Lifespan: 200 years
Average Height: 5 ft. 6 in. – 6 ft. 4 in.
Average Weight: 190 – 260 lbs.

Half-Orc / Orc

See goliath half-orcs on the half-orc page.

Halfling

Ability Modifiers: +2 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, -2 Wisdom.
Half-Goliath: Half-goliaths are humanoids with the goliath and halfling subtypes. This racial trait replaces Goliath.
Goliath Blood: Half-goliaths count as both goliaths and halflings for any effect related to race. This racial trait replaces Mountain Born.
Fearless: Half-goliaths of halfling backgrounds receive the Fearless halfling racial trait. This racial trait replaces Stone's Endurance.
Languages: Half-goliaths of halfling backgrounds may choose Giant or Halfling as their starting language in addition to Common.
Average Lifespan: 100 years
Average Height: 5 ft. 8 in. – 6 ft. 7 in.
Average Weight: 200 – 260 lbs.

Human / Samsaran

Ability Modifiers: +2 to one ability score of their choice
Half-Goliath: Half-goliaths are humanoids with the goliath and human subtypes. This racial trait replaces Goliath.
Goliath Blood: Half-goliaths count as both goliaths and humans for any effect related to race. This racial trait replaces Mountain Born.
Adaptability: Half-goliaths of human or samsaran backgrounds receive Skill Focus as a bonus feat at 1st level. This racial trait replaces Stone's Endurance.
Average Lifespan: 80 years
Average Height: 6 ft. 0 in. – 7 ft. 2 in.
Average Weight: 230 – 340 lbs.

Kuru

Ability Modifiers: +2 Strength, +2 Dexterity, -2 Intelligence.
Half-Goliath: Half-goliaths are humanoids with the goliath and kuru subtypes. This racial trait replaces Goliath.
Goliath Blood: Half-goliaths count as both goliaths and kurus for any effect related to race. This racial trait replaces Mountain Born.
Blood Courage: Half-goliaths of kuru backgrounds receive the Blood Courage kuru racial trait. This racial trait replaces Stone's Endurance.
Languages: Half-goliaths of kuru backgrounds may choose Giant or Kuru as their starting language in addition to Common.
Average Lifespan: 70 years
Average Height: 6 ft. 0 in. – 7 ft. 2 in.
Average Weight: 230 – 340 lbs.

Racial Traits

+2 Strength, +2 Constitution, -2 Wisdom
Goliaths both hit and take hits like a rock, but sorely lack the insight that comes with age.

Goliath
Goliaths are humanoids with the goliath subtype.

Medium
Goliaths are Medium creatures and have no bonuses or penalties due to their size.

Normal Speed
Goliaths have a base speed of 30 feet.

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

Fit for a Giant
Often times, goliaths find that the weapons of man are too small for their liking, and gravitate to larger weapons common amongst the giants. They can wield Large weapons without incurring the normal penalty to attack rolls.

Frigid Wastes
Goliaths receive cold resistance 5, having spent ages living on frozen mountain peaks.

Mountain Born
Goliaths receive a +2 racial bonus to Climb and Survival skill checks. In addition, they are immune to altitude sickness and do not lose their Dexterity bonus to AC when making Climb checks or Acrobatics checks to cross narrow or slippery surfaces.

Stone's Endurance
Goliaths receive a +1 natural armor bonus due to their boulder-like skin. Additionally, they gain DR 1 / magic. This DR increases by 1 for every 5 HD the goliath has.

Languages
Goliaths begin play speaking Common and Giant. Goliaths with high Intelligence scores can choose any of the following: Dwarven, Elven, Gnoll, Gnomish, Goblin, and Orcish.

Average Lifespan
40 years

Average Height
7 ft. 0 in. – 8 ft. 0 in.

Average Weight
260 – 380 lbs.