THOUL "Pain? You don't really know pain. None of you pink skins do." In their ever present quest to create enhanced warriors for their military, the Hobgoblins have had many great successes, and some spectacular failures. It's not sure which of those the Thouls are. Originally they attempted a magical fusion of Trolls and Ghouls hoping the Trolls regenerative nature would reinvigorate the dead ghouls flesh while retaining it's paralytic abilities. The resulting half undead monstrosities were uncontrollably insane, and it was decided to further dilute the creature by mating it with Hobgoblin prisoners (i.e. political dissidents who refused to take part in the wars). The result was far less powerful, but more mentally stable.
The Thouls are still barely intelligent carrion eaters without any sense of morality or civilization. Most of them are sterile, and getting them to obey orders is difficult. While they may seem like tall hobgoblins at a distance, their trollish ancestry is obvious in the greenish color of their skin and their facial features. Most would also seem to be diseased looking or somehow malformed.
THOUL RACIAL TRAITS · +4 Str, +2 Dex, +4 Con, -4 Int, -4 Cha
· Size Class: Medium
· Aberration with the Goblinoid Subtype
· Base speed 30 ft.
· +2 Natural AC Bonus
· Dark Vision 60'
· Paralysis (Ex): Opponents successfully hit with the Thoul's Claw or Bite Attacks must make a Fortitude Save (Save DC is Constitution based) or be Paralyzed for 1d3 rounds (Elves are immune to this effect).
· Fast Healing (Ex): Thouls have Fast Healing 4
· Scent (Ex): Identical to the ability listed in the MM.
· Thouls have a Primary Bite attack doing 1d4 plus Strength Bonus, and two Secondary Claw Attacks doing 1d3 plus 1/2 Strength Bonus.
· A Thoul has 3 Racial Hit Dice, giving it the following: 3d8 Hit Points, +2 base Attack Bonus, +1 Fort Save, +1 Ref Save, +3 Will Save, and (2 + Int modifier) skill points per level (with times 4 skill points for the first level). Class skills are Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Spot. They also get 2 Feats.
· Thouls automatically speak Common and Goblin. Bonus languages include Draconic, Giant, Gnoll, and Orc.
· Level Adjustment: +3
· Favored Class: Hobgoblin raised Thouls take Fighter, wild Thouls take Barbarian
STARTING AGE Adulthood: 14
Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer: +1d4
Bard, Fighter, Paladin, Ranger: +1d6
Cleric, Druid, Monk, Wizard: +2d6
AGING EFFECTS Middle Age: 30
Old: 45
Venerable: 60
Maximum Age: +2d10 years
HEIGHT AND WEIGHT Base Height: Male: 5'10" Female: 5'5"
Height Modifier: +2d12"
Base Weight: Male: 200 lbs. Female: 180 lbs.
Weight Modifier: (x2d6) lbs.
THOUL CHARACTERS Thouls make excellent melee combatants, particularly if they focus on their paralytic abilities. They should also make pretty decent gishes as long as their casting abilities are based on Wisdom, or Clerics with a nasty backup surprise.
Adventuring Race: Thouls adventure because they're in the Hobgoblin military and are ordered too, or for personal reasons. Most of them are too feral for civilized living so the life of an adventurer may suit some of the more adaptable ones.
Character Development: Thouls are always one step away from being cannibals or undead. They do not think in the manner of other Humanoids because quite frankly they aren't really Humanoid. The mix of Troll and Ghoul blood has wiped away much of what would tie them to any race but the Goblinoids, and even the Hobgoblins have difficulty controlling them.That and the pain they live in daily makes co-existence with them difficult.
Character Names: Thouls usually use Hobgoblin names.
ROLEPLAYING A THOUL Of all the other Humanoids only the Hobgoblins or the most vile and bestial will accept you. You tend to eat anything that isn't Goblinoid (and sometimes even Goblinoids if they show weakness). You don't practice hygiene, you have no social concepts (or at least none most societies understand or accept), and without the training the Hobgoblins give your kind to develop focus and see your way through your pain and baser instincts you are little more than a beast.
Personality: You are an unrepentant monster. All other beings are food or allies, nothing more (granted your definition of ally leans towards "bring whose presence I am forced to accept because I can't defeat him"). Pity and empathy are concepts you do not understand, and much of what makes the Humanoid races what they are is beyond your ability to accept or understand.
Behaviors: Thouls are barely coherent. Much of their life is spent in pain and their behavior reflects this. Their tainted ancestry causes them to favor the flesh of Humanoids above all else and they will ravenously consume it when they can. Left to their own devices they are little more than living Ghouls and only the Hobgoblins influence and stability makes them otherwise.
Language: Thouls use the Goblin tongue.
THOUL SOCIETY Thouls really have no society. They're litle more than bands of intelligent predators who can be taught the trappings of civilization (crafting, tool use, etc) but not it's more subtle conventions (social interaction, morality, ethics). If it doesn't deal with warfare it's not in their vocabulary.
Alignment: Much like their creators Thouls tend heavily towards Law and Evil. Thouls showing their trollish or ghoulish ancestors tendencies towards Chaos are usually culled pretty early.
Lands: Thouls generally live in any temperate or warm land or underground. In other words just about anywhere.
Settlements : Thouls will settle pretty much anywhere, though it's not often out of the sight of their Hobgoblin masters who don't really trust them.
Beliefs: Thouls usually worship the Goblinoid panthon, but some have turned to trollish or ghoulsih deities in the wild.
Relations: Thouls have the same racial hatreds the Hobgoblins do. Despite their quite obvious differences they don't see themselves as abominations or a racial mix so much as a magically enhanced hobgoblin offshoot made for purposes of winning the war. They aren't racially impure, they're parents are heroes who volunteered their children as weapons. How messed up is that?
THOUL ADVENTURES · There have been further developments in the creation of your race, but rumour has it the new and improved Thouls have displayed occasional mental aberrations that are unexplainable. In short the high command believes they're psychotic but intelligent enough to hide it except in moments of emotional excess. You have been asked to arrange for some to escape and accompany them to see if this is true.
· You have been subjected to various magical experiments to see if they can improve you. You are to test yourself in battle against the Elves.
· You are to help escort a Hobgoblin Princess to her promised husband. Unfortunately she has other ideas being both a necrophile and a lunatic of the highest order. You're certain her would be spouse knows nothing of this and are unsure whether or not delivering her is a good idea (or given her condition even how this arrangement was made possible). You need to find a Cleric who may perhaps have some advice. Something doesn't seem right.
THOUL RACIAL FEATS Improved HealingYour regeneration is equal to that of most Trolls.
Prerequisites: Thoul, Con 15+
Benefits: Your Fast Healing 4 becomes Regeneration 5 instead (Fire and Acid still effect you).
Ghoul BiteYou carry Ghoul Fever much like your ancestors.
Prerequisites: Thoul, Con 15+
Benefits: Opponents you bite successfully must make a Fortitude Save or contract Ghoul Fever (Save DC is Constitution Based).
Ghoulish VigorDeath is not permanent for you.
Prerequisites: Thoul, Ghoul Bite
Benefits: You become immune to disease. If killed (and you are at least 10 HD) you rise within 24 hours with the Gravetouched Ghoul Template (see Libris Mortis).
Troll SensesYou inherit more than your ancestor's healing.
Prerequisites: Thoul
Benefits: You gain Low Light Vision and your Dark Vision range increases to 90'.
Thoul Racial Substitution LevelsFighter Level 4: Replace the Level 4 Bonus Feat with Painless
Painless: You are immune to being Dazed.
Rogue Level 10: You gain new options with the Rogue Special Ability.
Special Ability: Leaning Towards Death (Ex): You are now immune to Poison and Paralysis. If killed you rise within 24 hours with the Gravetouched Ghoul Template (see Libris Mortis).
Barbarian Level 1: Replace Rage with Thoul Rage
Thoul Rage: This is identical to Barbarian Rage with the exceptions of the bonuses. Replace the usual bonuses with +4 Con, +4 Cha, and a +2 Morale Bonus on Will Saves.
Level 11: Replace Greater Rage with Greater Thoul Rage
Greater Thoul Rage: This is identical to Greater Rage with the exceptions of the bonuses. Replace the usual bonuses with +6 Con, +6 Cha, and a +3 Morale Bonus on Will Saves.
Level 20: Replace Mighty Rage with Mighty Thoul Rage
Mighty Thoul Rage: This is identical to Mighty Rage with the exceptions of the bonuses. Replace the usual bonuses with +8 Con, +8 Cha, and a +4 Morale Bonus on Will Saves.