As a brief for what got me thinking about this. I’m not a big fan of Demigods. I think they are quite boring flavor-wise and gameplay-wise. All they add is extra base stats, the rest of their gimmick comes from NOT having something in the game, which is something any character can already voluntarily choose to do. So I got to thinking what would be a fun and interesting way of approaching the god mechanic. Personally I would just remove Demigods from the game to replace them with this concept for a new race, but I would really enjoy playing around with this race.
Racial Profile: The Loxodon (name subject to change)
- This is a bipedal elephant-like race with ape-like hands/fingers but otherwise elephant body that has an affiliation for divinity. Their capstone ability presents a massive balancing act but also an incredibly diverse addition to build variety and player experimentation. Several crippling flaws such as fewer gear slots and poor dexterity give it an advanced complexity to survive the early and late game, but the unique benefits are intended to add lots of fun with this species.
Abilities/Mutations
- Large: Standard Large size Restrictions & Traits
- Elephant Physique (anatomy)
- Barding: You can wear Barding in the boot slot due to your massive lower body
- No Amulets: Your massive neck, trunk, and tusks prevent you from wearing any amulet.
- Trunk Hurl (Activated, Level 4, anatomy)
You hurl an item from your inventory at a foe.
- Ammo: Can use Potions, Weapons, or Body Armour (excluding Robes and Animal Skins). You select the item from your inventory when activating the ability.
- Potions: Consumed on use, applying their effect to the target.
- Weapons/Armour: Deals damage based on the item’s base stats (e.g., weapon damage dice, armour’s base AC). The item is not consumed and drops to the ground.
- Throwing ammo: Identical effect to throwing normally
- Cost: Puts you in a state of Exhaustion. Shares this state with Tusk Gore. Can’t be used when exhausted.
- Tusk Gore (Activated, Level 8, anatomy)
You make a powerful goring attack against an adjacent foe.
- Targeting: Can not target an insubstantial or amorphous creatures.
- Mechanic: The target, and any other monsters in a straight line behind it, are knocked back a maximum of 3 tiles. The chain of monsters will be pushed until they hit an immovable obstacle (wall, statue) or the total push distance is spent. Each monster in the chain after the first reduces the final push distance by 1.
- Damage Scaling: For every tile of intended push that is blocked (by a wall or another monster at the end of the chain), the initial target and any monsters that were moved 0 tiles take bonus bludgeoning damage.
- Control: The ability skips the turn of all monsters affected by the push (they are effectively dazed).
- Cost: Puts you in a state of Exhaustion. Shares this state with Trunk Hurl. Can’t be used when exhausted.
- Propitiator (Passive)
Praying at a faded altar to receive a god grants an immediate +3 Piety pips. This is intended to give some more value to faded alters and encourage risks and experimentation. - Polytheism (Level 14)
You may worship two gods simultaneously.
- Piety: Tracked with separate, independent meters.
- Cannot worship a Good god with an Evil god.
- Trog is incompatible with Vehumet, Sif Muna, and Kiku.
- Zin is incompatible with Jiyva.
- Xom is incompatible with all gods except Ignis.
- Abandonment Penalty: If you abandon one god while worshipping two, the other god disapproves, and you lose all piety with both gods. Otherwise, wrath works the same as usual.
- Negative Energy Vulnerability
You have rN - - (2 pips), making you highly vulnerable to the undead and negative energy. - Microphobia (Passive)
You possess a deep, instinctual fear of miniature creatures.
- Mechanic: You suffer a slaying and spellpower penalty (indicated by a status like
Micro(-X)) which scales with the number of Small, Little, or Tiny monsters in your line of sight. This is similar to Ru’s cowardly.
Base Stats & Growth
- Starting: Strength 12 , Intelligence 10 , Dexterity 3
- HP: +20%
- MP: Normal
- Willpower: +5 per level.
- Level-Up Bonus: +1 to Strength or Intelligence every 4th level.
