Nephilim (4e Race)

Nephilim

By Claparo-Sans

The Nephilim are descended of the Four Horsemen of Apocalypse. They were called upon when the 7 seals were broken... and they left you to finish what they started.

Racial Traits

Average Height: 5'11 - 6'2

Average Weight: 160-195 lbs.

Ability Scores: +2 Wisdom, +2 Constitution or Dexterity

Size: Medium

Speed: 7 squares squares

Vision: Low-light

Languages: Common, Celestial

Skill Bonuses: +2 Acrobatics, +2 Athletics

Celestial Resistance: You have resist 5 radiant. The resistance increases to 10 at 11th level and 15 at 21st level.

Horseman: You gain Summon Horse as a daily power.

Disillusioned: You gain a minor racial bonus to your Will defense. In addition, you gain a moderate racial bonus to saving throws against charm effects.

Of Dust: The nephilim claim ancestry from the descent of the four heavenly horsemen of the apocalypse. So you are considered an immortal creature for the purpose of effects that relate to creature origin.

Summon Horse	Nephilim Racial Power
You summon a horse to your aid for a limited amount of time by materializing it with your sheer will and ancestry.
Daily  Racial, Summon
Minor Action	Ranged 5
Prerequisite: Nephilim race
Effect: You conjure a horse to an unoccupied square. It disappears back into the ether after 4 hours.

The four horsemen were fearsome beings that descended millennia ago, supposedly as a wake-up call that the world was ending. Now, it all seems to have been some silly folktale. However, the nephilim are witnesses, for they were formed of the dirt which the enchanted horsemen had trod on. They know the signs of the times which many ignore. The world will indeed come to an end, as it was ordained. Whether the nephilim choose to share this information or push for an ever-faster conclusion is not clear. But they will ride on, be they angels or demons of the end in human form.

Play a Nephilim if you want...

• To be that edgy player who believes the world is ending
• To have descended from a quartet of demigods who hold the world' fate in their hands
• To be able to summon a horse
• To be a member of a race that favors the avenger, paladin and ardent classes.

Physical Qualities

The nephilim look like humans at first glance. They are each modeled after the four horseman, who were said to have harsh, linear features like that of finely chiseled statues. Their true nature is revealed on nights of a new moon, which is when markings appear on their bodies, like that of arcane runes. The color of these markings vary from red, blue, purple and gold. The script of this is discernible to creatures who can read Celestial, and often details the deeds and crimes of the living that warrant destruction. As there were four horseman, there are four distinct types of nephilim: war, death, famine, and pestilence. That of war has red hair, bronze skin, and fiery eyes. Those of death are pale, often very thin and sometimes even boney or haggard-looking, with somewhat sunken eyes and anemic hair. Famine types have ebon skin, empty eyes, and white hair. The pestilence nephilim are possibly the most ordinary-looking.

Playing a Nephilim

The nephilim live in small, isolated enclaves in harsh terrains like highlands or alpines. They live in seclusion to properly train their minds and bodies in solitude and without the interference of other sentient beings like humans. As one can guess, they are not very fond of others, particularly other humanoids, whom they believe to be the source of the need for a world reset. As were the horsemen, nephilim are very toneless and bland in personality. Their faces seldom show emotion and they do not feel intense emotion. Their mindsets are best described as impartial and unfeeling. They view themselves as arbiters of the world, training to bring down judgment when the time is right.

Nephilim communities are few and far in between. They are expert riders, trained to fight on horseback. As beings with a celestial ancestry, they have enlightened minds that make them seem distant and inscrutable. Even to allies, their minds are often shielded. To other nephilim, however, they all share the same sort of rational mindset, and so it is easier to tell what their own think. They are a bit fatalistic, believing that no matter what bonds they make, they will all be destroyed when the world ultimately ends. Some hasten to carry out the unfinished deed and speed towards armageddon. Others are simply content to see wars and other creatures destroy each other slowly. And then there are the select few who dare to fight their fate. These nephilim often have people and allies whom they cherish.

Nephilim Characteristics: Rational, fatalistic, enigmatic, emotionless, dreary

Male Names: Ares, Strife, Hades, Pestes, Damien

Female Names: Gloria, Fury, Carceri, Bella, Morticia

Nephilim Adventurers

Three example nephilim adventurers are described below:

Faith is a nephilim avenger who has made her peace with the end of the world. She solicited the help of a deity who promises her a surefire way to save what it is that she cherishes most. In return, she must bear down on targets given to her by this god, using forbidden magics and methods to achieve her ends. She hopes that her sins of murder will be forgiven someday when the end ultimately comes, but she does not care so much as long as her most precious people will survive.

Fault is a nephilim paladin. He was convinced from a young age that he must cleanse the world of its impurities by seeking out the magic that would destroy all life in the world. His faith in that cause has imbued him with an unbending force that he uses to crush believers of other "false" faiths. He refuses to look away from his goal, despite all the blood on his hands. For the longest time, he no longer finds joy in life, and only looks forward towards the end.

Urd is a nephilim ardent who is unlike the rest of her dreary race. She sees the end of the world and the dying environment to be a challenge that they must confront. She is wary that she alone is not enough for this job, and so she left her naysayer enclave to search for allies who would believe in her cause. Despite the danger and hardship ahead, she tries to keep a cheery outlook, believing that things can always change for the better, and that their ancestors had wrongly interpreted what was actually a warning to be an inevitable prophecy.

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