Equitarn

Example of an equitarn PC

Stoic equine giants violently displaced from their traditional home

Equitarn Heritage Traits

Average Height: 290 – 320cm (9’6″-10’6″)
Average Weight: 680 – 907kg (1,500-2,000 lb.)

Ability Scores: +2 Strength, +2 Constitution or Wisdom
Size: Medium
Speed: 6 squares
Vision: Normal

Languages: Common and Bestial
Skill Bonuses: +2 Endurance, +2 Athletics

Beast Kin: Your ancestors were amongst the many beast-kin who once ruled Alm. You are considered both a beast and a humanoid for the purpose of effects that relate to creature type.

Pack Mule: When determining your normal load, heavy load, or maximum drag load, you treat your Strength score as 5 points higher.

Stubborn: You gain a +5 bonus to saving throws against effects that daze, stun or dominate.

Rock Solid: You have the rock solid background power.

Rock SolidEquitarn Heritage Power
By stopping still and holding your ground, you become a truly immoveable object.
Encounter
Move Action Personal
Effect: Until the beginning of your next turn, you are immobilised and cannot be pushed, pulled or slid.

Traditional occupants of the Almish grasslands, equitarn are an ancient beast-kin people who resemble humanoid horses. Historically, the equitarn were nomads, who formed small social groups which met and mingled as they traversed the Grasslands. However, they suffered tremendous losses during the War of Empires, which forced many to leave their traditional home and adapt to living in foreign lands.

Although many equitarn were able to return after the war, their displacement and diaspora remain significant cultural scars. Today, many have grown up having little or no knowledge of their traditional home and culture. Nevertheless—wherever they may be—their size and strength makes them popular candidates for any form of manual labour, and certainly for adventuring.

Play an equitarn if you want…

  • to be a massive, unmoveable foe.
  • to act slowly, but decisively.
  • to consider the effects of lingering diaspora.

Physical Qualities

Equitarn are gigantic, barrel-chested humanoids, taller even than jotun and bannyr at their largest. Much like horses, some are naturally thick-limbed and solid, while others are lean and statuesque—even as they tower over most other folk. Sex seems to have little influence on their size or weight.

Equitarn have human-like faces, but with a broad, high bridge to the nose, and an elongated jaw that’s almost—but not quite—a muzzle. They have short, smooth coats that display various equine patterns, and mane-like hair on a scalp that reaches down the neck, even to the shoulders. Their hides and manes come in any colour found among horses, and they typically have yellow, orange or deep brown eyes.

Naturally hardy, equitarn usually opt for simple, sparse clothing that does not hamper movement. They rarely choose to wear armour, but when they do it resembles horse barding—though rare is the equitarn who will willingly serve as a mount. Their fingers and toes are capped with hard keratin not unlike a hoof, so they often go barefoot in any terrain.

Equitarn have somewhat shorter lifespans than humans and grow quickly, becoming full-grown in less than ten years. Though robust, they have low fertility rates; births are typically celebrated, and children cared for eagerly by the entire community.

Playing an Equitarn

The archetypal equitarn is stoic and reserved, wasting few words on emotional matters. They prefer careful reasoning to rash decisions, but once their minds are made up, they are resolute in their choices. Their experience during the war galvanised the cultural importance they place on family and community; wherever they live and whoever they perceive their family to be, an equitarn will likely do anything in their power to keep them safe.

Grasslander equitarn rarely become adventurers for the sake of their own interests, but can frequently be found acting as bodyguards for less hardy creatures. Their traditional culture also values the idea of “long memory”; one should take care to repay debts and answer wrongdoing, for the good of the entire group. Often, dying equitarn pass unsettled scores on to their next-of-kin, a responsibility treated with great solemnity.

For equitarn born in industrialised areas, adventuring is more likely to be a simple career choice; there’s always room in a company for a big, imposing heavy who doesn’t mind carrying an extra pack.

Equitarn are perceived as… Loyal, calm, dependable, stoic, stubborn, cautious, vengeful, patient, placid, momentous.

Example names: Alder, Autumn, Bank, Briar, Bracken, Calyx, Dust, Eve, Maple, Oak, Rust, Smoke, Storm, Teak, Trace, Thorn.

Most equitarn names come from an aspect of nature significant to their birth; a particular type of tree, for example, or the time of year they were born.

Equitarn Backgrounds

Day Labourer

“One, two, three – heave!”

While others of your kind yearn for the freedom of the open plains, your world is that of the city. Wherever goods need to be hauled or structures built, there is always work for a strong pair of arms and a steady back. With a reputation for reliability and diligence, equitarn labourers rarely have difficulty finding work. Do you live up to that reputation, or are you using it to cover a private lazy streak? Who is your current employer, and how do they feel about you taking up with an adventuring party?

Associated skills: Athletics, endurance

Associated ritual: Feat of strength (FRPG)

Herd-Lost Wanderer

“There is nothing left for me here.”

Though you chose the life of the herd, your family was somehow taken from you. What happened to them, and who was responsible? Did they fall to the ravages of nature, or to deliberate warfare—and how were you spared? Do you seek revenge? Do you regard your current group as your new family, or do you believe that nothing can truly replace your old herd?

Associated skills: Nature, endurance

Associated ritual: Long-distance runner (MP2)

Indebted Bodyguard

“I go where you go.”

For some reason, you owe a debt of gratitude to one of your companions. Perhaps they helped you directly, or maybe their ancestor did you a great service. Perhaps you even agreed to inherit the debt of a herd member who passed away. Either way, your duty to repay this debt is even more important than your home and family, and you are a loyal guardian to your charge—whether they like it or not.

Associated skills: Intimidate, insight

Associated ritual: Warded campsite (MP2)

Equitarn Feats

The following feats include this heritage as a prerequisite.

Blade Catcher

Prerequisite: Equitarn

Benefit: While you do not wield any crafted weapons and are not using a shield, you gain a +2 bonus to your AC and Reflex defences.

Bullheaded

Prerequisite: Equitarn

Benefit: You can move through squares occupied by enemies marked by you.

Caveat Imperator

Prerequisite: Equitarn, Leader

Benefit: Whenever an ally charges, you gain a +2 feat bonus to speed until the end of your next turn.

Centre of Gravity

Prerequisite: Equitarn

Benefit: As long as three or more enemies are adjacent to you, any enemy that begins its turn flanking you cannot move away from you during that turn.

Cleave Ranks

Prerequisite: Equitarn

Benefit: When you push, pull or slide an enemy, you can increase the distance of the forced movement by 1, if this puts the enemy in a square that is adjacent to no other enemies.

Communal Instinct

Prerequisite: Abilen, Equitarn or Gremblin

Benefit: You gain a +1 bonus to attack rolls and a +2 bonus to damage rolls on attacks granted to you by allies. The damage bonus increases to +4 at Paragon tier and +6 at Epic tier.

Definitive Might

Prerequisite: Gnoll or Equitarn; trained in Intimidate

Benefit: You use your Strength modifier in place of your Charisma modifier on Intimidate checks.

Earth’s Renewal

Prerequisite: Equitarn or Jotun

Benefit: Your total number of healing surges increases by two. You add your Constitution modifier to your healing surge value.

Fortified Defences

Prerequisite: Equitarn

Benefit: When you are wearing heavy armour, you gain a +1 bonus to Fortitude and Will.

Hammer Hooves

Prerequisite: Equitarn

Benefit: You gain proficiency with the hoof slam natural weapon.

Your hoof slam is a natural two-handed melee weapon in the hammer and unarmed groups. It has a +2 proficiency bonus and deals 1d12 damage, and has the brutal 1 property. Whenever you are not wielding another weapon and do not have a shield equipped, you are considered to be wielding this weapon in both hands.

1.0—Initial version
  • 5 years ago Add First published as “hammer fists”
1.1—First revision
  • 1 year ago Update Revised name to avoid plural confusion
  • 1 year ago Update Broad revision to wording to clarify intended usage
  • 1 year ago Add Weapon now has the ‘unarmed” group

Inevitable Might

Prerequisite: Equitarn, Str 15+

Benefit: When you miss all targets with a daily attack power that has no miss effect, each target takes damage equal to your Strength modifier.

Landstrider

Prerequisite: Equitarn or Jotun

Benefit: You gain a +2 bonus to exploration speed. When you travel in a group, the group can move at your exploration speed, instead of using the speed of its slowest member.

Mighty Hammer

Prerequisite: Equitarn, Hammer Fists

Benefit: Your hammer fists have a +3 proficiency bonus instead of +2, and grant a +1 bonus per tier to damage rolls.

Mighty Hurl

Prerequisite: Equitarn, Str 15+

Benefit: When you push, pull or slide an enemy with a melee or close attack, you may knock that target prone at the end of the movement.

Natural Armour

Prerequisite: Equitarn

Benefit: When you are wearing light or no armour, you gain a +2 racial bonus to AC.

Rebellious Instinct

Prerequisite: Equitarn

Benefit: When you fail a saving throw against an effect that dazes, stuns, or dominates you, you can make a melee basic attack as a free action. If this attack hits the source of the effect, you get a +5 bonus to your next saving throw against that effect.

Shudderstrike

Prerequisite: Equitarn, Str 15

Benefit: When you make a close or melee attack that targets AC, you may make the attack target Fortitude instead.

Stonewall

Prerequisite: Equitarn, Paragon Tier

Benefit: At the end of your turn, if you did not move during your turn and are immobilised, you gain resist all equal to your Constitution modifier until the beginning of your next turn.

Tower of Fear

Prerequisite: Equitarn or Jotun, trained in Intimidate

Benefit: Foes marked by you suffer a -2 per tier penalty to damage.

Uphill Struggle

Prerequisite: Equitarn, Con 13

Benefit: As long as you are bloodied, you gain a +1 bonus per tier to all defences. When you are on 0 hit points, this bonus is doubled.