Beastfolk, Porque (3.5e Race)

Porque

The porque (pronounced as both ‘pork’ or ‘por-KAY,’ depending on who you ask, and how pretentious the pigfolk in question happens to be) are as self-serving a race as one is ever likely to meet. Unmotivated, uninterested, and uninvolved, the pigfolk have largely been overlooked in the history of the world, and frankly could not care less. There are two significant groups of the porque. The first and most common are the civilized porque. This group tends to live out of the sight of others, on small subsistence farms, shacks and shanties in the rural backwoods of the world, where they can live out their lives without bother from others, using anonymity as a potent defense. Some of these civilized porque make their way into cities, usually after they get some money to invest, and use their natural intelligence to find ways to make their money work for them. This segment of the porque population is one of the least liked, because they tend to be rich, lazy, and overbearing in the extreme, reveling in luxury and excess. The second significant group of porque are the wild ones, roving bands of feral porque that have sunk into a state of barbarism, and now revel in savagery and raiding. Most civilized porque will deny the existence of their wild brethren, simply because they are such an embarrassment, and because they have a bad enough reputation as it is.

Personality

In general porque are friendly and outgoing-enough that they get along all right with most people. However, it quickly becomes apparent that their outgoing natures are purely surface-level, and they actually tend to be quite shallow, despite their rather keen natural intellects. Most of the mental efforts of a porque are spent in figuring out ways to avoid work, and they are creatively adept at this in ways that would astound even the most inventive of gnomes.

Physical Description

With legs that are about as long as their arms, a set of pointed ears, a rounded snout, beady eyes of brown or black, and a curly tail, the porque look very much like pigs that have learned how to walk on two legs and use tools. Porque range in height from a short, pot-bellied 3’6” all the way up to a burly 6’8”, and have a variety of skin colors, falling in the same ranges as expected of normal pigs. Their body hair ranges in amount from a scanty, downy covering of more domestic-oriented porque to the short, thick, bristly fur of porque who have taken to the barbaric lifestyle. While most porque tend to be rather chubby, growing grossly obese as they age, they are often very muscular beneath their pot bellies, and many have quite well-developed physiques.

Relations

Civilized porque are uninterested in forming relations with other races, except as they benefit the porque. For this reason they are not especially well-known as a race, and in those few instances where they are known, they are not well-liked, though not strongly disliked either. They get along fairly well with halflings, though, each race recognizing the entrepreneurial spirit of the other. Barbarian porque tend to be on as good relations with orcs as any race can be, and alliances are often formed between the two races. Porque do not get along with elapi or with wolfen at all, stemming from deep racial conflicts in the distant past.

Note: Porque can interbreed with orcs, the result being a normal half-orc with more porcine features.

Alignment

Uninterested and uninvolved, except for personal gain, most porque are Neutral in alignment, focusing on their own comfort and survival first and foremost, and on the needs of others only as they relate to the needs of the porque.

Lands

Porque, whether wild or civilized, do not have lands of significant sizes. They tend to live where other people do not, where the soil is too rocky or wooded to yield more than subsistence-level sustenance, simply because it means that they don’t have to fight others for it. Unmotivated as they are, porque lands tend to stay in their native states, with little improvements made by the pigfolk residents. Instead, porque are adept at growing a host of different edible mushrooms (as well as a few that have other practical values, including defensive ones) in special buildings designed for this purpose, or in caves found in the hills that shield their homes from prying eyes, and make most of their living from this, and from the fruit trees that they manage to grow, despite all the odds against them.

Religion

In general, porque ignore the gods, in the hope that the gods will ignore them. However, the pigfolk do have a healthy respect for nature gods, such as Obad-Hai, and worship them with proper reverence, knowing that their livelihood and survival generally depend upon the good graces of such beings. City porque will worship whatever gods are most socially appropriate for their standing in society, though their devotion is seldom very deep or sincere, and barbarian porque will often worship the gods of the orcs.

Language

Unambitious as they are, the porque use Common as their base language, as this is the one that lets them communicate with the largest number of people with the least amount of fuss. They also can select bonus languages from the following, all of them races that they occasionally meet or which are enemies to their race: Draconic, Elven, Feline, Giant, Gnoll, Goblin, Halfling, Orc, Wolfen.

Names

Porque names are generally of little importance to the race, except for basic communication. Their racial lazy tendencies extend even to the names mothers choose for their children. Hence, names like Happy, Porker, and Trotter are typical, sounding like nicknames to most other races, but being the norm for the porque race. Last names are based on a patriarchal line, and tend to be surprisingly grand-sounding, despite the otherwise lackadaisical manner of porque naming conventions, including such high titles as Barnswaithe, Hamton, Mudworth and Upswich. Self-important porque will often use their last name instead of their first name, knowing that it sounds far more prestigious.

Adventurers

The average porque would much rather live a quiet life with plenty of things to eat, adequate shelter from the elements, and safety from danger. An ambitious porque wants good food, comfortable living arrangements, and enough power to keep others from pestering the porque in question. Because of this, porque are the most likely of all the races to adventure solely for the sake of profit, and they are seldom subtle about it. There are a few rare exceptions to this rule – porque who actually enjoy living life on the edge, who occasionally like helping others, and who revel in their racial knack for survival against all odds. A slightly more common subset of this sort of porque are barbarian bands that have gone largely feral and taken to a nomadic lifestyle, wandering as raiders and warriors wherever they go. While both are actually rather rare, these sorts of porque show up in sufficient quantities that most people who have actually met a porque would think that they were the norm for the race, simply because they are the ones that most people are likely to meet outside of a porque’s normally sedentary lifestyle. Other porque think these adventurous, wild souls are strange and potentially dangerous, and treat them as one might a wild animal – with healthy respect, a bit of fear, and lots of distance.

Racial Traits

• +4 Constitution, +6 Intelligence, +4 Wisdom, -4 Dexterity, -4 Charisma
• Monstrous Humanoid
• Medium-size
• Porque base land speed is 20 feet
• Diminutive: Porque can take Dwarfism (found in the “Feats of the Beastfolk” document) without restriction. Their movement remains 20 feet, though.
• Iron Stomach: Porque can stomach just about any organic material and use it as food. Quality is unimportant to a porque’s survival – only quantity.
• Keen Scent: Porque can take Scent as a racial Feat if Wisdom is 11 or higher.
• Rooting Skill: +2 to Gather Information and Survival skill checks.
• Master Merchants: +4 to Appraise, Craft, and Profession skill checks.
• Variable Genes: Depending on whether the porque is descended from the wild barbarians or the sophisticated traders it will lead to a different physique. The Porque can choose between gaining a 1d4 natural attack and toughness as a bonus feat or a bonus feat of their choice.
• Automatic Languages: Common. Bonus Languages: Draconic, Elven, Feline, Giant, Gnoll, Goblin, Halfling, Orc, Wolfen.
• Favored Class: Wizard or Artificer.
• Level Adjustment: 1

Vital Statistics

Table: Random Starting Ages

Adulthood	Simple	Moderate	Complex
years	+	+	+

Table: Aging Effects

Middle Age1	Old2	Venerable3	Maximum Age
years	years	years	+ years
At middle age, −1 to Str, Dex, and Con; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha. At old age, −2 to Str, Dex, and Con; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha. At venerable age, −3 to Str, Dex, and Con; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha.

Table: Random Height and Weight

Gender	Base Height	Height Modifier	Base Weight	Weight Modifier
Male	' "	+	lb.	× () lb.
Female	' "	+	lb.	× () lb.

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