Dunners (3.5e Race)

Dunners

Personality

The average dunner mindset is fiercely independent, to the point of not even considering the interests of others. This might appear unempathic or even cruel to outsiders, but this is not true: dunners as a race just value independence like no other virtue. In the average dunner's opinion, it is every person's responsibility, even right, to take care of themselves. Dunners also extend this thinking to their family and friends, and are often extremely protective of them.

Dunners are excitable but down-to-earth, adaptable but traditional, fleeting but trustworthy; truly, a race of contrasts. They greatly enjoy freedom of moving around and speaking their mind, and a nomadic lifestyle comes naturally to members of the race.

Physical Description

Some dunners in the east train themselves as monks.

Dunners are short, with male adults averaging at around 4 to 5 feet tall and females just short of that. They weigh a lot for their height, as the dunner body structure is thick, especially in the limbs and neck; an average dunner might thus weight around 110 to 140 pounds, with females again just below that.

The trademark visual feature of dunners is the thick, coarse hair that grows on their heads, chests, arms and legs, and occasionally shoulders, hands and feet, depending on the dunner. This hair is often light in color, with ashy blonde, light brown and pale white being common. Dunners have thick arms and legs and strong cores, remnants of a history of climbing, and their faces are more outward than a humans.

Dunners move quickly with a light stride, thanks to their natural dexterity, and are natural climbers. Their fingers and toes are strong, with the toes being much longer than a humans and more agile, lending well to climbing. Dunners often wear easy, unrestricting clothing, with vests and shorts being a common combination. They have absolutely no love for hats, boots or gloves, but many enjoy jewellery and piercings.

Relations

Dunners are a sociable, hardworking and honest folk in general, so there are few who dislike the race with a passion. Humans and goblins especially are in good terms with dunners, and many towns and areas are populate by the three in equal amounts. Dwarves are fairly neutral on the issue, considering the dunner's need for independence strange but their honesty respectable.

The one race to clash with dunners fairly often is goliaths, whose tribal customs and strong sense of unity with not only their own folk but with all creatures in general are in opposition with the independent and "me first" attitude of the dunners.

Alignment

Dunners have a strong inclination towards chaotic, as their carefree, somewhat selfish natures can clash with norms and laws; they are very rarely lawful. They take no particular stance on the good/evil axis - an individual dunner is just as likely to be either, depending on his views of others and life philosophy.

Note that in the setting dunners originate from, Years of Gold, there is no alignment system, and thus dunners were not designed with a specific alignment in mind.

Lands

Dunners have, since time immemorial, been the best sailors and fishermen in existence. Their bodies, as well as their nature, are well-suited to a seafaring life. This leads to most concentrations of dunners to be on shorelines and along rivers, with deltas and port cities being the most common. Some dunners even live permanently on their ships.

In Pansaer (of the Years of Gold setting), dunners are concentrated around the port cities of Calimport and Chestwood, as well as the twin rivers that surround Tull. In addition, they can be found in basically any city, town or village, as their nomadic nature takes them across the lands.

Religion

Dunners are not a particularly religious folk, believing more in fighting for themselves than to any divinity to help them. In the ancient times, they followed the animist religion of the Eight Winds, and the practices, if not the strongly religious aspects, are still common among the race. The name of the northern wind, Polic, is a common dunner swearword, as it is considered the wind of ill omens.

Some dunners, especially those living deeper inland, take on the religious habits of the cultures around them. Most of these dunners consider themselves the followers of Auri or especially Mieli, both of whom stand for independence, strength and freedom.

Language

A rarity among the races, dunners speak no language of their own. This stems from a long history of cultural osmosis, as well as a nomadic lifestyle ill-suited for a language unusable in foreign lands. Nearly all dunners speak more than one language, often speaking as many racial languages as possible to ease travel among those people. Of old, dunners did have an ancestral language: they still occasionally use single words from that language, and place names in areas where they're common are sometimes of that origin.

Names

Culturally adaptive as they are, dunners often take names common in the area rather than ones that are born from some cultural roots. However, a common generalization is that dunners prefer shorter names with plenty of d's and t's, and their surnames, while inherited, are often descriptive rather than arbitrary.

Male Names: Dwight, Dominique, Taran, Eren, Mattey

Female Names: Katelyn, Tawney, Dee, Leah, Mathilda

Surnames: Farstrider, Marinery, Diverson, Redbottom

Racial Traits

A dunner woman of the wild lands.

• +2 Dexterity, -2 Constitution: Dunners are nimble of both body and mind, but they aren't quite as hardy as most other races.
• Humanoid (Dunner): Dunners are humanoid in form and in way of thought.
• Small: As a Small creature, a dunner gains a +1 size bonus to Armor Class, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +4 size bonus on Hide checks, but they use smaller weapons than humans use, and their lifting and carrying limits are three-quarters of those of a Medium character.
• Dunner base land speed is 20 feet. They also have a climb speed of 20 feet.
• +2 racial bonus on Balance and Jump checks: Dunners are agile and sure in their movements, owing to their woodland heritage.
• +8 racial bonus on Climb checks: All dunners are exceptional climbers. A dunner must make a Climb check to climb any wall or slope with a DC of more than 0, but they can always choose to take 10, even if rushed or threatened while climbing. If they choose an accelerated climb, they move at double their climb speed and make a single Climb check at a -5 penalty. They cannot run while climbing. They retain their Dexterity bonus to Armor Class (if any) while climbing, and opponents get no special bonus on their attacks against a climbing dunner.
• Automatic Languages: Common. Bonus Languages: Elven, Gnome, Goblin, Halfling, Sylvan.
• Favored Class: Rogue.

Vital Statistics

Table: Dunner Random Starting Ages

Adulthood	Simple	Moderate	Complex
20 years	+1d6	+2d6	+3d6

Table: Dunner Aging Effects

Middle Age1	Old2	Venerable3	Maximum Age
40 years	60 years	80 years	+3d20 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: Dunner Random Height and Weight

Gender	Base Height	Height Modifier	Base Weight	Weight Modifier
Male	3' 8"	+2d6	110 lb.	× (2d6) lb.
Female	3' 5"	+2d6	100 lb.	× (2d6) lb.

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