Aurloch (4e Race)

Aurloch

By Xuza

"We carry death itself within our blood."

Racial Traits

Average Height: 6.5-7.5ft.

Average Weight: 175-250lbs.

Ability Scores: +2 Intelligence, +2 Dexterity

Size: medium

Speed: 6 squares

Vision: Low-light

Languages: Common

Skill Bonuses: +2 Perception, +2 Acrobatics

Antivenom: You gain a +5 racial bonus to saving throws against poison effects.

Deathly Essence: When you are bloodied, the enemy who drew your blood takes necrotic damage equal to your Intelligence modifier.

Touch of Decay: You can use touch of decay as an encounter power.

Touch of Decay	Aurloch Racial Power
You wipe your weapon through your wounds, covering it with your lethal blood.
Encounter  Necrotic, Weapon
Minor Action	Melee touch
Requirement: You must be bloodied.
Target: Your weapon or the weapon of an adjacent ally.
Effect: The target weapon deals an additional 1d6 poison damage on the next attack it makes before the end of your next turn.

The aurloch are an isolated, tribal race. They live in extended family groups - or "clans" - and are very hostile to outsiders, especially non-aurlochs. They choose to make their homes in dense, dark forests, often in the mountains. The aurloch build their houses - called "tree-huts" - in the high treetops of evergreen trees, using the foliage as natural camouflage. From there, they can launch assaults on trespassing humanoids, or on the forest creatures that they hunt. The foliage also provides natural shade during the daytime, keeping their houses cool and dark, which is exactly the conditions they need for sleeping. The aurloch are a nocturnal species, and thus need to fall asleep in the morning in order to maintain their proper sleep cycle. It is said that during their awakened state in the night, their blood replenishes its dark energies from some source associated with the Mistress of the Night, Shar. Imbued with her hatred of life, it can damage other creatures that come in contact with it.

Play an Aurloch if you want...

• to be a creature who preys on other humanoids.
• to have blood that causes necrotic damage to any non-aurloch being.
• to be a member of a secluded, clan-based society.
• To be a member of a race that favors the Ranger, Sorceror, Warlock, and Rogue classes.

Physical Qualities

The aurloch are a tall, slender people. They are lithe and lean, giving them sufficient strength while allowing for swift and agile movements. The aurloch have dark, rich-toned skin, usually either brown or grey. Their ears are large and pointed, and their eyes are usually ice-blue or jade-green, though there have been some with golden-yellow, or even red irises. Their fingers and toes are quite long, sometimes 6 inches or more. The canine teeth of the Aurloch are long and very sharp, for they are born hunters. The aurloch usually have dark brown or black hair - though there have been recorded cases of fiery-red, and even silver - which they grow out very long, and weave into elaborate hairstyles, often with many braids, and almost always weave beads, wooden charms, and other trinkets into their flowing, often waist-length manes.

Playing an Aurloch

The aurloch settlements are very isolated, and thus, they are naturally wary and hostile towards other races. If an outsider approaches them in peace, however, they will usually allow them to enter their village unharmed, though they will keep a close watch on them. There are, very occasionally, aurloch who overcome their xenophobia and leave their forest behind, choosing to wander off into other lands, in search of excitement, profit, research, or sometimes vengeance. These individuals always have trouble adapting to having other races all around them, but most can, with time, learn to cooperate with members of other species, and occasionally even befriend some of them.

Aurloch Characteristics: Cautious, Cunning, Intelligent, Violent, Defensive

Male Names: Anaiiok, Sordrelaak, Kielviuk, Fentreik

Female Names: Anaiiel, Sordreleal, Kielviil, Fentreul

Aurloch Adventurers

Three sample Aurloch adventurers are described below.

Kielviuk is an aurloch sorceror whose tribe was attacked by a small dragon when he was 13 years old. The dragon killed almost half of his clan-mates, and burned nearly 3/5 of his village to ash. The beast would have finished the job, but, in desperation, Kielviuk's arcane powers awakened, and he managed to slay the dragon before it finished his tribe off. The survivors of his tribe were now left to mourn their slain family, and most of them had lost their homes in the attack. Kielviuk was enraged at this dragon's assault, and he swore an oath that day, to hunt and kill as many dragons as he could in his life, and with that, he left his village and headed off into the outside world to begin his purge of the dragon species.

Fentreul is an aurloch ranger who was exiled from her village by the elders of her tribe for sparing the life of a human intruder. She then left the forest and hurried toward the town that the human had claimed to live in, hoping to meet him and befriend him and his companions, that she might form a new, adoptive clan to replace the one she had lost. Much to her delight, she was moving so fast, she actually caught up to him on the way back to his home. The two of them went on to become close friends, adventuring about with one another, and eventually, their bond grew even stronger than friendship. They became lovers, and one night in their camp, they wound up going into the same tent together, and, long story short, her womb is now home to his child.

Anaiiel is one of the aurloch rogues in a new initiative her village started. Their goal: To infiltrate and purge societies of those who would mean them harm. This often meant taking jobs to murder non-aurlochs indiscriminately. While she herself is only essentially a grunt, she believes in the mission, as a foreign kingdom had invaded and scarred her home village whilst she was a child.

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