Mountain Giant (3.5e Race)

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Mountain Giants

Mountain giants are huge humanoids that live in remote mountain caverns. Standing 14 feet tall and weighing 2,000 pounds, mountain giants are impressive foes. They greatly resemble hill giants. Their skin color is a light tan to reddish brown with straight black hair. The males have heavy beards but no mustaches, and they have large pot bellies. They are typically clothed in rough hides or skins and carry huge clubs as weapons. The stale reek of a mountain giant can be detected several hundred feet downwind.

Personality

Mountain giants are violent as a result of their history. Banished by their hill giant ancestors, they were forced to drive out the stone giants from their northern ranges. They regularly mock-fight amongst each other. However, they prefer not to start a real fight without a genuine reason (although they will jump into a fight that's already started without hesitation). As such, they may not act anymore violent than an average human on a good day.

Physical Description

Skin color among mountain giants is usually light, as they do not see much sunlight in the mountains. Their hair is brown, black or occasionally red (because of its rarity, red hair is held in regards to great beauty among mountain giants), with eyes ranging from brown to green to blue. Males are known for their massive beards.

Relations

Mountain giants get along with most other giants as giants do. Relations with stone giants are bitter after over a century of conflict ended with the stone giants being forced to retreat from the North. Hill giants, from which the mountain giants are descent, have mixed feelings toward them. On one hand, they are the descendants of hill giants banished for their horrible crimes. On the other hand, they managed to beat the stone giants in combat, something the hill giants could never accomplish. Cloud and Frost giants are encountered with relative frequency on the high, cold mountains. All 3 races have learned to give each other decent berths and respect each other, if only as foes not worth fighting. Individuals of non-giant races relate the same way to mountain giants as they do hill giants.

Adventurers

While not the brightest of races, mountain giants are smart enough to know their place in a party of adventurers. Barbarians, warriors, or occasionally monks or paladins, they charge into the fray without hesitation or fear, overwhelming opponents with sheer physical might and acting as a shield for allies behind them. Some have even been known to throw their allies at opponents. In the wilderness, they will take advantage of their size and often carry teammates across rivers, up cliffs and other places normal races have a hard time reaching. Once in a civilized area, mountain giants are impeded by their size, particularly in crowds, narrow alleys or when trying to pass through doors. Although rarely comfortable in big cities, mountain giants are fine when in a building that has large rooms with tall ceilings, such as castles, theaters/concert halls/stadiums (as they can see over everyone, they do not mind sitting in the back row, something normal patrons can appreciate) and forts. Other buildings they feel home in are smaller versions of the buildings that they frequent at home, such as smiths, armories, restaurants and taverns (provided they can fit through the door)

Alignment

Often Chaotic and/or Neutral

Lands

Having evicted the stone giants, mountain giants dwell the Northern mountain ranges and are very resistant to the cold weather. Their breathing is largely unaffected by high or low altitudes.

Religion

Very few mountain giants follow gods other than Kord and Obad-Hai. Mountain giants are largely agnostic, perhaps building an occasional temple or calling out for Kord's help when they are in mortal danger.

Language

Giant, Common (albeit with bad grammar, usually resulting in referring to everyone in the third person)

Names

Mountain giants are named at birth. As in many human and giant cultures, the family name is same as the father's, while the mother picks the first name. Mountain giants will not have officially obtained a middle name until manhood. The middle name of an adult mountain giant is a verb (that he is very good at or performs frequently) or an adjective(that describes him). No one is quite sure how this tradition started. Some sources claim the most logical explanation is that one of the first mountain giants had a habit of saying "(verb or adjective)? (verb or adjective)is my middle name!"

Racial Traits

• +16 Strength, –2 Dexterity, +10 Constitution, –4 Intelligence, –4 Charisma.
• Giant
• Large size: –1 penalty to Armor Class, –1 penalty on attack rolls, –4 penalty on Hide checks, +4 bonus on grapple checks, lifting and carrying limits double those of Medium characters.
• Space/Reach: 10 feet/10 feet.
• A mountain giant’s base land speed is 40 feet.
• Low-Light Vision
• Racial Hit Dice: A mountain giant begins with twelve levels of giant, which provide 12d8 Hit Dice, a base attack bonus of +8, and base saving throw bonuses of Fort +8, Ref +4, and Will +4.
• Racial Skills: A mountain giant’s giant levels give it skill points equal to 15 × (2 + Int modifier). Its class skills are Climb, Jump, Listen, and Spot.
• Racial Feats: A mountain giant’s giant levels give it five feats.
• +9 natural armor bonus.
• Natural Weapons: 2 slams (1d8).
• Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A mountain giant is automatically proficient with simple weapons, martial weapons, light and medium armor, and shields.
• Rock Throwing (Ex): Adult mountain giants are accomplished rock throwers and receive a +1 racial bonus on attack rolls when throwing rocks. A mountain giant of at least Large size can hurl rocks weighing 45 to 50 pounds each (Small objects, 2d6) up to five range increments. The range increment is 130 feet for a mountain giant’s thrown rocks. A Huge mountain giant can hurl rocks of 65 to 80 pounds (Medium objects, 3d6).
• Rock Catching (Ex): A mountain giant of at least Large size can catch Small, Medium, or Large rocks (or projectiles of similar shape). Once per round, a mountain giant that would normally be hit by a rock can make a Reflex save to catch it as a free action. The DC is 15 for a Small rock, 20 for a Medium one, and 25 for a Large one. (If the projectile provides a magical bonus on attack rolls, the DC increases by that amount.) The mountain giant must be ready for and aware of the attack in order to make a rock catching attempt.

• Cold Homeland (3.5e Trait)
• Automatic Language: Giant, Common (albeit with bad grammar, usually resulting in referring to everyone in the third person). Bonus Languages: Elven, Goblin, Orc, Dwarven.
• Favored Class: Barbarian.
• Level Adjustment: +5.

Vital Statistics

Table: Mountain Giant Random Starting Ages

Adulthood	Simple	Moderate	Complex
20 years	+ 2d4	+ 5d6	+ 5d12

Table: Aging Effects

Middle Age	Old1	Venerable2	Maximum Age
60	130	150	+ 3 d12 years
At old age, −1 to Str, Dex, and Con; +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha. At venerable age, −2 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	10' 9"	+ 2 d12	1,350 lb.	5 × (3 d6) lb.
Female	10' 2"	+ 3 d6	1,010 lb.	5 × (1 d12) lb.

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