Legends of Belariath

Cat People

The cat people are an harmonious people, gracing the forests of the wilds with their simple communities and unique gifts. They can range in color and in hair length, as any feline can, but are usually easy to spot. The blood of a cat is strong, and shines through even in the impure races that grace Belariath to produce mixed breed offspring. Look for pointed ears lifted off the skull; ears that turn and twist to locate any sound. Look for dark eyes with varied colored slits that contract and dilate at the merest change of light and can stare down the most hypnotic serpent or sorcerer. And of course, look for the most obvious feature, the long, dexterous tail.

Cat people have an expected feline grace that is demonstrated through their mastery of the physical arts and the more sensual of sexual pleasures. In combat their agility makes them dangerous but they lack the stamina to overcome an enemy who can outlast them. What a cat woman, or man, lacks in stamina, they make up for in desire, agility, and creativity. The curse of the cat-people given to them by the goddess when the ritual that created the race failed has affected their reproductive cycles. There are far more females in any given community than there are males, even outnumbering them 7 or more to 1. Thus, when slavers come to the woods to raid and cart away for sale and auction the easily worn down female prey, it is rarely a reason for outcry among this simple and delicate, yet hardy race.

Character Creation

Starter Classes: Bard, Cleric, Ranger, Thief, Mage, Druid, Warrior, Healer, Shaman, Artisan, Entertainer, Laymen

Advanced Classes: Mist Raider, Monk, Warrior Mage, All Elemental Mages, Hierophant, Priest/Priestess, Paladin, Warlord, Seductress, Necromancer

Starting Stats:

	STR	INT	AGI	RES	STA	SPL	LFE
Basic Stats	2	4	4	1	4	4	7
Class Bonuses
Bard	0	1	0	3	0	1	0
Ranger	2	0	2	0	2	0	3
Thief	0	1	6	2	0	0	0
Mage	0	6	0	2	0	1	0
Druid	0	3	0	2	0	1	0

Appearance

Cat-people, thought of by many as the slaves and servants of Belariath, are a feline based humanoid race that has been on its own struggling to find a place in the world. In the beginning they were a proud race but fickle arguing led to many fights and the race parted ways to form orders of clans that we have today. They range in height from 5' 2" to around 6' and are generally of slinky build and sleek musculature bodies.

As a race they are very easily recognizable; small kitten ears sit on the top of the head, small agile pert bodies but, the easiest characteristic to spot is their long tail. Barely there if not slight muzzles are sometimes seen but Cat people resemble more human then anything. Above all, the eyes of these creatures can see into near darkness, picking out objects to people with only a sliver of light to guide them.

Cat people are normally very agile in nature, especially the thieves; warriors (rangers) have normally balanced abilities. Cat girls are normally very easily aroused - unless they have a better reason not to - e.g., they are in a happy marriage or orders to the contrary from a master. Otherwise, kittens are very amorous creatures. This reflects the fact that most cat-girls are used for sex slaves by the other races present in the inn, and can usually be good workers if trained properly.

The cat people blood is very strong and shows through most half-breed cats, showing the strength of the genetics in the kittens born, ranging from just the ears and tail and no fur to very furred types for those who are borne of wolven blood, are very furred and their ears are much more pronounced and floppy than normal cat-people, but are resented by the other cat-people for being of this blood.

Misconceptions:

A little clarification on physique of the cat people, they do not walk on all fours, they are bi-pedal like humans. They can have variable amounts of fur depending on the player preference but only in natural colors. Characters without fur do have hair, which can be almost any color that the player wishes.

No Paws: Players sometimes misunderstand is that cat people have hands not paws. As such, the cat person has harder than normal nails, which can extend as normal cat claws, to shock and possibly cause fear in a cowardly enemy, but they enjoy the full-featured benefits of hands.

Cat features: A player can choose on the level of the strength of the inheritance of the curse. Fur, ears, tail are all common. The teeth can look almost pointed but not fang like. Cat people have always been known to be quick agile creatures, and as such make good thieves and forest rangers. They also can see reasonably well in the dark, so even the darkest night will not bother many of them, except for the weaker females of course…

Cat people can also climb very adeptly, most taking to trees in time of trouble to attack the foes from above or just to sleep, but many are colored to match the fact they are from the forest for example.

On a purely OOC note. Keep in mind that catnip, has no affect on the Cat people. None.

Penalties

One thing cat people aren’t, however, is strong - most cat bodies are very weak and vulnerable to an enemy that can survive long enough to wear the cat-person down. This is how most of the cat slaves of today were caught.

Advantages and Disadvantages

The advantages and disadvantages of this race are meant specifically for roleplay effect only and have no combat orientated stats. If you wish to use such advantages and/or disadvantages into your combat, please remember they have no stat effects, will add nothing to your rolls of combat dice.

Advantages:

The Cat people race, with their slinking build, always seem to have a more stable motion to them. From climbing a tree for fun or fighting among the roof tops, these odd, sultry mixes of a race tend to have a habit of landing on their feet or finding the right hiding spot. They even seem to have a natural way of knowing when to move before disaster strikes. They have, as we would call it, a natural sway and rhythm to the Earth around them. Senses are fine tuned with what they see, hear and feel far quicker than any race, giving the Cat people a slight edge over the competition or knowing when just to get out of the way faster.

The Cat people are indeed mostly human and yet, they bear an edge of mischievous nature that at times can be amusing, laugh out loud funny, or at times, just plain cruel. They can't seem to help themselves and yet often such a natural inheritance of this playfulness can help them out. They could easily embarrass that Barbarian or perhaps thinking it funny, saw off the front legs of a chair and cause that Warlord or Arcana mage to go tumbling right to the floor just as they move to sit. Such a nature could show up within their fighting styles as well, such as throwing dirt into ones face to startle and gain an immediate advantage to get that first strike in. Maybe it aids them in outwitting the one that would put a pretty collar around their neck. Perhaps they are too much of a handful and not just that gentle ear flicking slave you always wanted. Still, being unpredictable isn't always a bad thing, especially if you are one of the Cat people.

Disadvantages:

Water is not a Cat Persons best friend, while some tolerate it on the lowest level, most would rather find a cozier, smaller pond and quickly scrub down rather than loiter about for long in the waters deep. While such things might not hinder their ability to become a Hydromancer, it may keenly affect their want to be on the waters edge too often, scare them enough that the smart Slaver would know to use it against them knowing they might avoid it if possible, and likely while they might learn to swim, their immediate need to get out of anything deeper then their own small pond they enjoy definitely plays a harsh hand in the life of a Cat Person.

A delicious scent is an easy lure to any cat person, this could range from chocolate to the scents of a good stew or the sexual smells in the air, hindering perhaps their judgment on being more cautious of their surrounding area. Catnip not included - see above.

Combat Modifiers

Disabilities and Their Mechanics

Type:	Attack				Defense				Init
	CloPhy	RanPhy	CloMag	RanMag	CloPhy	RanPhy	CloMag	RanMag
Sight	-30%	-90%	-30%	-100%	-30%	-30%	-30%	-30%	-50%
Hearing	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	-25%	-25%	-25%	-25%	-25%
Speech	N/A	N/A	-100%	-100%	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Hands/Arms***	-25%	-25%	-50%	-50%	-25%	-25%	-25%	-25%	-20%
Legs/Feet***	-25%	-10%	-25%	-N/A	-25%	-20%	-25%	-25%	-25%
* Attack/Defense Enchantments are not effected, penalties apply to base stats. * Those temporarily blinded in one eye will receive half penalties for blindness to all attacks. ** All penalties are cumulative. *** Penalties are cumulative per limb. * Those temporarily blinded in one eye will receive half penalties for blindness to all attacks.