Sea Elf Alternate Racial Traits
Racial Variants
Deep Sea Elf: Take the 'Deepdweller', 'Artificial Mana Circuits', and 'Technomancer' alternate racial traits.
Full Set Bonus: Gain Modulo and Circuitron as Bonus Languages. Metal Armor you wear takes half the damage or penalties from effects that corrode metal such as a Rust Monster's Rust ability or the Rusting Grasp Spell.
The Qida, or Deep Sea Elves, are the most common of the Sea Elves, but also the least commonly seen by the denizens of the surface. Making their home in the deepest oceanic depths and the deepest tracts of seafloor they can find, the Qida are the inheritors of the legacy of the Sapphire Elves, and are incredibly intelligent and knowledgeable about many things, including the long-lost ways of Sapphire Elven technology. Secluded, Secretive, and protective of their knowledge and peace, the Qida are distant from their Sea Elven kin but are feared for their highly technological cities and militaries.
Tropical Elf: Take the 'Boiling Body', 'Surface Diplomat', and either the 'Underwater Scout' or 'Vocal Hypnosis' alternate racial traits.
Full Set Bonus: You can glimpse a creature's surface thoughts when you remain in contact with them for at least one full round. You may only use this ability on a creature once per day. Creatures immune to mind-affecting are unaffected by this ability.
The Aear, or Tropical Elves, are the Sea Elves most commonly seen and met by the races of the surface. Commonly making their homes near the water's surface(relatively speaking), these Elves are superb diplomats, leaders, and politicians, and prefer to solve their problems by means of negotiation, trickery, subtle manipulations, and machinations over straightforward conflict. To this end, their voices are infectiously soothing, supernaturally so, and to those who know of them, it is best to never let one's guard down around a Tropical Elf, lest their sickly sweet voice grab hold of your mind and influence you in small, subtle ways.
Lava Elf: Take the 'Boiling Body', 'Underwater Battlemaster', and 'Swordtrained' alternate racial traits.
Full Set Bonus: Choose a combat maneuver - you do not provoke when performing it. This counts as having the 'Improved-' feat for it, but you may still take the 'Improved-' feat to gain the +2 from it.
The Infensus, or Lava Elves, are the most militaristic and deadly of all the Sea Elves and commonly make their homes near massive underwater volcanoes, lava vents, or other sources of immense heat where they build their cities suspended over massive lava pools. With a rigid and ordered society focused on weeding out weakness in all forms and increasing the strength of the society as a whole, the Lava Elves are hotheaded but expert warriors who can fight a kraken as deftly as they can a fellow Sea Elf, and who place much greater emphasis on the community and unity than the self and individualism. Trained from birth in all ways of the warriors, they are at home in their scaly armor and wield their blades like an extension of their bodies, using their mastery of combat maneuvers to control the battlefield before dealing the killing blow. Uniquely, they are the only Sea Elves to retain use and mastery of their ancestral weapon, the Elven Curve Blade.
Trench Elf: Take the 'Deepdweller', 'Trench Magic', and 'Huagi Mutant' alternate racial traits.
Full Set Bonus: You may choose to deal an extra 1d4 damage with your natural attacks, but if you do you take 1/2 that bonus damage yourself.
The Huagi, better known as the Demon Elves or Trench Elves, are deadly and savage Sea Elves who make their homes in deep oceanic trenches, canyons, atop underwater mountains, and in other remote places, where they attack and drown passing surface ships with their savage armies. The ancestors of the Sahuagin who are said to be naught but Trench Elves whose mutations ran away from them and became uncontrollable, Trench Elves are notoriously hideous, with bodies rife with mutation and oddities that grow more and more mutated with age. They have massive deadly jaws of sharp, shark-like teeth, mottled skin, fins, and deadly claws, all of which they use to eviscerate and slaughter their foes with a lethal efficiency that not even the Lava Elves can match. Capable of speaking to sharks with an odd telepathic connection and one of the only races the ferocious Sahuagin pay respect and deference to, they form large raiding parties with shark and Sahuagin alike and often become the bane of both underwater and surface dwellers alike.
Pureblood Sea Elf: Take the 'Pureblood Lineage', 'Sapphire Blood', and 'Elemental Jets' alternate racial traits.
Full Set Bonus: Gain Elderspeech as a bonus language. Gain the elemental manipulation from a Kineticist Element of your choice(GM Approval).
The original and most ancient Sea Elves, the 'Purebloods' are, to many, the 'true' Sea Elves - most of the Sea Elves of the modern day are but pale imitations using the title "Sea Elf" in a grossly incorrect sense, borrowing it from the true race of Sea Elves to use as a title. These Purebloods trace themselves and their lineages back to the Age of Sapphires nearly 5000 years ago, when the last remnants of the Sapphire Elves fell to the Seafloor around Zheng-Kitar and slowly devolved over eons into feral, savage beasts - and though these devolved, deranged, mutated Sapphire Elves were eventually found millennia later and transformed into the first Sea Elves, their legacy remains - these Purebloods often run Sea Elven society and sit as leaders, generals, and commanders in a society of military elite and hardened warriors. They are generally well-respected and treated with honor, and are marked by their face tendrils, magical blood, and organic nozzles that allow them to channel elements to fly through air and water alike.
Alternate Racial Traits
Eelborn: Ability Scores become (+2 Dexterity, +2 Strength, +2 Wisdom, -2 Constitution, -2 Charisma). Replaces Ability Scores.
Born with thin and lithe bodies that resemble lanky humanoid eels more than Elves, some Sea Elves are born with these strange bodies that better lend themselves to quickness and strength of body and wit, but they lack durability and charm of other Sea Elves.
Deepdweller: Gain Cold Resistance 10 and a racial +2 bonus on saving throws versus illusion spells and effects. Your darkvision doubles to 120ft. Replaces Elven Immunities.
Living at the bottom of the deepest oceanic trenches, these bottom-dwelling Sea Elves with dark blue and oceanic colored skin adapt to their harsh new conditions as their skin grows accustomed to the lack of heat in their environment, allowing them to better resist cold while their eyes adapt to the inky blackness to see better within it, as well as through mirages and illusions which often occur at the deepest depths of the oceans.
Boiling Body: Gain Fire Resistance 10 and a racial +2 bonus on saving throws versus evocation spells and effects. Each round you successfully maintain a grapple, you deal 1d4 points of fire damage to the creature you are grappling. This damage increases by one step for every 4HD you possess. Replaces Elven Immunities.
Making their home near flaming underwater Lava Vents, tropical waters, and other hotspots of underwater volcanic activity, these flaming Sea Elves have bodies as hot as magma, skin that is a beautiful mixture of teal and crimson, and an innate resistance to powerful and explosive effects that let them swim freely within boiling and evocative waters.
Trench Magic: Gain a bite attack and two claw attacks that deals damage appropriate to a creature of your size, which count as primary natural attacks(Bite counts as secondary if you wield manufactured weapons). You can communicate telepathically with sharks to a distance of 100ft. This communication is limited to simple concepts, such as “attack,” “come,” and “defend.” Replaces Sea Elven Magic.
A name which was intended to mock the Trench Elves for their brutal and savage way of life, "Trench Magic" is a term for physical violence and brutality used by Sea Elves of all kinds...the Trench Elves, however, have embraced this term and refer to their sharpened claws and powerful razor teeth as "Their Magic".
Artificial Mana Circuits: You may add an amount of bonus damage to all spells you cast that target a foe equal to your HD. If the spell involves a save, they take half of this damage on a failed save. Add +1 to the DCs of all spells of the evocation school you cast. Replaces Sea Elven magic.
A product of their ingenius use of the technology left behind by the Sapphire Elves, the Sea Elves can, through an incredibly dangerous and often lethal process, implant metallic conduits capable of streamlining and better conducting Mana through their bodies and allowing them to cast their spells with a violent intensity that is unmatched by other mages.
Technomancer: Gain the Technologist feat as a bonus feat. You gain Spellcraft and Knowledge(Engineering) as class skills if you did not already have them, and gain a +2 to one of them. If you have one or both of them as class skills, just add +2 to them instead. Replaces Forgotten Pacts.
As they study, catalogue, and maintain the technology of the Sapphire Elves over the eons, many Sea Elves have become suprisingly adept at the use of the ruined and crumbling relics of the long forgotten past, and the Magitech Engineering used to make them.
Avenger of the Ancients: Gain Hatred against creatures of the Dragon type, or gain Hatred against creatures of the Monstrous Humanoid type(Player Choice). Gain telepathy 100ft. Replaces Forgotten Pacts.
As one of, if not the last living relatives of the Sapphire Elves, the Sea Elves were naturally quite furious when the Fall of the Sapphire Elves took place...however, their location at the bottom of the ocean and their origins meant they did come about until after it had already happened...in order to make up for what they perceive as their greatest failure and failing their ancestors in their time of need, many Sea Elves vigorously throw themselves at the creatures responsible for destroying their ancestors, hoping to enact a toll in blood to avenge the destruction of the Sapphire Elves.
Surface Diplomat: Gain Diplomacy and Sense Motive as class skills, and gain a racial +2 to Diplomacy. If you already have sense motive as a class skill, gain a +2 to it instead. Replaces Forgotten Pacts.
Living in communities in waters frequented by sailors or oftentimes in communities close to the surface, many Sea Elves become quite accustomed to dealing with surface folk and negotiating with them, and as a result learn to use their natural charism usually used for commanding and leading battles for an altogether different purpose.
Betrayer: Gain hatred against creatures of the human and elf subtypes. All such creatures take a -2 penalty to their CMB and CMD while within 20ft of you. This penalty increases by 1 for every 5HD you have. Replaces Replaces Forgotten Pacts.
As they can trace their origins back to the High Lamia and the Sapphire Elves, many Sea Elves do not truly see themselves as Elves - some see themselves as beings wholly unique, some see themselves as objects belonging to the Lamia, while others still see themselves as something more ancient than Elves. Whatever the case, these Elves favor their High Lamia creators and/or their connection to the Sapphire Elves more than anything else, and despise the Humans and Elves of the surface for 'abandoning' their ancestors, defying their Lamia creators, and for considering themselves the 'same' as them.
Smoothscale: Gain no Natural Armor Bonus. All Movement speeds gain +10ft, and you gain a racial +2 to Acrobatics and Escape Artist checks. Replaces Scaly Skin.
With smooth bodies lacking scales, some Sea Elves use such a lack of scales to their advantage to zoom through the water and move quicker on land, the water that clings to their body making them even more slippery than their other kin.
Huagi Mutant: Gain a +3 natural armor bonus. Once a day whenever you take damage, you can fly into a frenzy for 1 minute; gaining a +2 racial bonus to Constitution and Strength but a –2 penalty to AC. Replaces Scaly Skin and Forgotten Pacts.
With a hide rampant with mutation and scaly growths, the Huagi Elves are a feared bunch that are even more durable and resilient than normal, with bodies rife with mutation and tough scaly hides that contain no beauty or sanctity of their kin; Instead, they are brutal and savage mutants who are the more militaristic and warlike of all the Sea Elves, raiding the coasts and denizens of the deep alike alongside their lesser Sahuagin brethren.
Underwater Scout: Gain blindsense out to 30ft, which increases to 60ft when fully submerged in water. Replaces Underwater Warriors.
Their eyes and senses finely tuned to listen for the faintest vibrations in the water, some Sea Elves, though sometimes less than ideal at seeing conventionally, are so acutely aware of their surroundings that they can pick out things based on feel alone...while this ability works to a lesser degree on land, they are keen enough to detect changes in air as they do in water.
Underwater Battlemaster: Gain +6 to their CMB when fully submerged in water, which decreases to +4 on land. Replaces Underwater Warriors.
Rather than possessing slimy skin that allows them to easily escape other attempts to grapple or restrain them, some Sea Elves are born differently than their kin thanks to their environment, and the viscious oil-like slime excreted from their skin not only keeps them moisturized, but also acts a powerful adhesive that assists them in their own maneuvers against their foes.
Maelstrom Dweller: All Water within 30ft of you is always treated as being calm water, and cannot rise above calm unless you allow it. Additionally, for a number of rounds per day equal to your CONMOD(Minimum 1), you and all allies within 30ft of you are unaffected by all effects from being in the waters of a maelstrom, and treat the water as Calm Water. Replaces Seafriend.
For the Sea Elves that call the waters beneath Obliteration Reef North or South their home, they sometimes adapt to become capable of traveling safely above or below the waves, their very presence calming the waters around them and allowing them to pass unhindered...
Titanfish Hunter: Gain +2 to hit and damage, and +1 dodge AC versus all non-humanoid creatures bigger than yourself. 3/day, you can release a mental pulse with a radius of 300ft that alerts you to the presence of any Magical Beasts, Abberations, Animals, Undead, or Creatures with the Water or Aquatic Subtypes. You pick from one of these options each time the pulse is used, and you learn the absence or presence of such creatures and their general location relative to you within the radius of the pulse. Replaces Seafriend.
Trained from birth to combat the massive Kaiju that lurk within the waters of their oceanic home, many Sea Elves fight constantly against these hated foes with such a ferocious dedication that they become more innately capable of fighting and defending themselves against them, and develop their normal empathy with sealife into a type of Sonar Pulse that allows them to detect their prey's presence.
Sapphire Blood: Gain Hydraulic Push, Obscuring Mist, and Touch of the Sea as spell-like abilities usable 3/day cumulatively. Gain Hydraulic Torrent as a spell-like ability usable once per day. Replaces Seafriend.
Their blood bubbling with forgotten and ancient power, Sea Elven Purebloods are not just marked with their facial tendrils - their blood itself has echoes of the Sapphire Elves' once mighty power.
Vocal Hypnosis: As a full-round action that does not provoke AoO, you can force all creatures you wish within 60ft that can clearly hear you(They do not need to understand you, just hear you) to take a -2 penalty on all saving throws versus Charm and Compulsion effects for as long as you keep speaking, plus an additional minute after the last round in which you used this ability. Creatures affected by this ability must make a will save(DC 10 + 1/2HD + CHAMOD) or become one step friendlier to you, to a maximum of friendly. Others do not know they are being affected by this ability unless they are immune to Mind-Affecting abilities. This ability is Extraordinary, and cannot be suppressed even by an antimagic field or mage's disjunction. Replaces Vocal Harmonics.
Putting their beautiful voices to use in other, more mystical and esoteric fields, some Sea Elves learn how to incorporate subtle hypnotic suggestions and compelling speech patterns into their speech, letting their beautiful voices worm inside the minds of those who listen to them and subtly twist their minds to their will. Considered a darker but somewhat acceptable use of one's voice, this hypnosis is rumored to play a large part in Sea Elven diplomacy, where enemy diplomats somehow are persuaded into giving the Sea Elves more advantageous deals and benefits in negotiations.
Obliteration Harmonics: 3/day, you may begin a discordant symphony of destruction as a move action. You can keep the symphony going for a number of rounds equal to (1 + CONMOD, min 1). Maintaining this ability is a swift action on your turn, and you can drop it as a free action. Within 30ft of you while you maintain this ability, all water becomes nearly impassable, requiring DC 25 Swim checks to stay afloat as if in stormy water. All enemies that start their turn inside this radius take 1d8 points of sonic damage and are shaken unless they succeed at a Fortitude save(DC 10 + 1/2 HD + CHAMOD), after which they take half damage and are not shaken. At 4HD and every 4 above it, the damage dice for this ability raises by 1. Replaces Underwater Warriors and Vocal Harmonics.
Special: If you have levels in a class that grants you a bardic performance ability(Like the Skald's Raging Song or the Bard's Bardic Performance), you may add this effect to your bardic performance when you use this ability.
For the Sea Elf villages that lay beneath the legendary Obliteration Reefs, some Sea Elves are entranced by the massive maelstroms of destruction such that they learn to capture its destructive harmonics in their songs, sending harmful harmonic vibrations into their enemies and stirring up the water nearby.
Imperious Voice: Gain a racial +2 on Perform(Sing) and Intimidate checks, and you gain an extra language for every rank you put in linguistics. Replaces Vocal Harmonics.
Their voices booming and layered like many of them are talking at once, some Sea Elves use their naturally commanding voices excellently in battles, skirmishes, and even in politics, where the layered and booming nature of their voices is not only beautiful, but capable of striking fear in the hearts of those who hear them.
Elemental Jets: Gain the Jet(120ft) Universal Monster Rule, allowing you to move up to 120ft as a full round action in any direction, above or below water, without provoking AoO, though this movement must be done in a straight line. Replaces Vocal Harmonics.
Their bodies possessing strange organic nozzles located on their palms and feet as well as rarely their Elbows and stomach and other places, the Sea Elven Purebloods are notable by these nozzles, which allow them to expel bursts of water to grant them momentum - pale echoes of the multi-elemental control the Sapphire Elves could maintain, but useful nonetheless.
Swordtrained: You are automatically proficient with swordlike weapons (including bastard swords, daggers, elven curve blades, falchions, greatswords, kukris, longswords, punching daggers, rapiers, scimitars, short swords, and two-bladed swords). You may fight underwater with slashing and bludgeoning weapons with no penalty. Replaces Weapon Proficiency.
Trained from birth in swordplay, the more Martial Sea Elven communities consistently produce excellent and top-quality warriors that are easily the match of a half-dozen lesser warriors on the surface or from other Sea Elven communities. Taking pride in their excellent martial prowess, these deadly warriors are prideful and take immense joy in proving their immense skill to others.
Linked Descendants: You may select any alternate racial trait from High Elves, ignoring race-based prerequisites but you must meet all others as normal. If it replaces one trait, it replaces Sea Elven magic. If it replaces two, it replaces Sea Elven Magic and Seafriend.
As the descendants of the Sapphire Elves, the Sea Elves are of a similar enough nature and makeup that they are not wholly dissimilar to the High Elves, and this loose racial connection - as both races are loose descendants of the Sapphire Elves - lets the Sea Elves manifest some racial quirks very similar to the High Elves on occasion.
Pureblooded Lineage: Gain a racial +2 to all Grapple Checks. Gain a Tentacle attack as a primary natural attack appropriate for a creature of your size, and you may use your face-tentacles to carry objects as well as to retrieve small, stowed objects carried on their persons as a swift action. Replaces Weapon Familiarity.
Tracing their lineage back to the first Sea Elven Purebloods who descended directly from the last of the Sapphire Elves, the 'Purebloods' of Sea Elven Society are marked indelibly with face-tendrils that betray their true nature, allow them to slam others, grab them, and otherwise use them to retrieve objects on their person - but more importantly, it is a status symbol impossible to fake or mimic: A pureblood is, to many Sea Elves, the "True" Sea Elf - all others are but pretenders to the title.
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