Warlords of the Mushroom Kingdom: Human and Kappa
Human
The things that come out of the Pipes are often odd and sometimes monstrous, but for some reason, one of the most common arrivals through the Warp are the humans. They have been present at many of the most momentous events in history, from the long-past collapse of the Kong Empire to the modern conquest by the Dragon Emperor, and many in the Kingdom of Flowers pin their hopes for freedom on the new human arrivals.
Humans do not belong here, and in some way the world recognizes that. While everyone knows that the spirits exist and must be placated and honored through proper interactions, humans can do so directly. Every human can see the spirits of the land and sky with their unaided eyes. Coming from another world, they don't live entirely in this one, and the land itself can recognize it.
That means the most common fate for arriving humans is madness. Few can live with the sensation that they are being watched all the time, especially when it's so easy for them to see the myriad of staring eyes. Perhaps that is why humans have played such a major part in history--those who avoid madness are truly capable individuals with the spark of greatness within them.
Statistics
Cost to Play: 0
Stat Modifiers: Strength -1, Willpower -1, Wisdom +2
Size: Medium
Special Abilities:
Kappa
The footsoldiers of the Dragon Emperor, the kappa have been shaped by their long habitation in the Kappa Wastes to the south and east of the Kingdom of Flowers. The kappa are a brutal people, quick to solve problems through violence and suspicious of outsiders, but in a place where the very air can kill, where agriculture is difficult or impossible and survival must be torn screaming from the land, their behavior is perhaps not so surprising.
Kappa are built for combat, with hardy green scales, vicious claws and fangs, and a massive armored shell that protects their midsection and vital organs. While they are quite small when they are born, kappa grow throughout their entire lives. Adolescents are as tall as an amanita, and by middle-age the kappa are taller than a mandragora and still growing. Elder kappa can grow to twice the height of a mandragora or higher. The Dragon Emperor himself is nearly 15 feet high, which is part of the reason why his power is nearly unchallenged.
The kappa are organized into tribes, each with its own territory and its own paths through the Wastes. The tribal paths are set by the shamans, who consult with the kappa ancestors on all decisions of import and advise the tribe on matters both spiritual and temporal. It is because of the shamans that there are any kappa left in the Wastes at all, because when the Dragon Emperor united the tribes and whipped them into a horde to assault the Kingdom of Flowers, some shamans defied the Dragon Emperor's warlocks and proclaimed that the ancestors looked with anger on his actions. The kappa had been exiled to the Wastes for long-ago deeds, they said, and should not leave until they properly atoned. Some kappa from these tribes have even come to the Kingdom of Flowers to oppose the Dragon Emperor, who they view as a heretic and a blasphemer.
Kappa tend to be fatalistic and serious, with little aptitude for risk-taking and a heavy focus on tradition, but the conquering of the Kingdom of Flowers is causing massive changes to their culture. Some tribes have abandoned their shamans entirely, raising up the Dragon Emperor's warlocks as their advisors and worshipping hideous Things from beyond the Star Road. Some tribes some almost lost, unsure of how to behave in the face of the abundance that surrounds them. Harsh traditions that favor conservation of resources, protecting hunting grounds, and avoiding or or utterly destroying enemies have little place in a land where the earth freely offers its bounty and waters run clear under the open sky. Regardless of how the Dragon Emperor's conquest ends, the kappa will never be the same.
Statistics
Cost to Play: 0 points
Stat Modifiers: Strength +3, Speed -3, Constitution +2, Willpower +1, Intelligence -1, Charisma -2.
Size: Medium or Large. Players of kappa may pay an additional 5 points at character creation to start as Large.
Special Abilities:
The things that come out of the Pipes are often odd and sometimes monstrous, but for some reason, one of the most common arrivals through the Warp are the humans. They have been present at many of the most momentous events in history, from the long-past collapse of the Kong Empire to the modern conquest by the Dragon Emperor, and many in the Kingdom of Flowers pin their hopes for freedom on the new human arrivals.
Humans do not belong here, and in some way the world recognizes that. While everyone knows that the spirits exist and must be placated and honored through proper interactions, humans can do so directly. Every human can see the spirits of the land and sky with their unaided eyes. Coming from another world, they don't live entirely in this one, and the land itself can recognize it.
That means the most common fate for arriving humans is madness. Few can live with the sensation that they are being watched all the time, especially when it's so easy for them to see the myriad of staring eyes. Perhaps that is why humans have played such a major part in history--those who avoid madness are truly capable individuals with the spark of greatness within them.
Statistics
Cost to Play: 0
Stat Modifiers: Strength -1, Willpower -1, Wisdom +2
Size: Medium
Special Abilities:
- Flexibility: Humans may choose two stats and increase them by 1 each. This does not increase the possible maximum of that stat.
- Magical Susceptibility: Humans are affected more by magic, for good or ill. Whenever the target of a magical effect, all numbers are increased by 1 per 5 points of the original effect, rounded up. A +2 bonus becomes +3, 10 points of fire damage becomes 12, and so on.
- Second Sight: Humans are always aware of the spirits around them, whether they want to be or not. The spirits can also tell they are being observed, which can lead to all kinds of "interesting" situations. Humans have no special ability to see through sorcerous concealment.
- Skilled: Humans may choose an additional two Favored Skills.
Kappa
The footsoldiers of the Dragon Emperor, the kappa have been shaped by their long habitation in the Kappa Wastes to the south and east of the Kingdom of Flowers. The kappa are a brutal people, quick to solve problems through violence and suspicious of outsiders, but in a place where the very air can kill, where agriculture is difficult or impossible and survival must be torn screaming from the land, their behavior is perhaps not so surprising.
Kappa are built for combat, with hardy green scales, vicious claws and fangs, and a massive armored shell that protects their midsection and vital organs. While they are quite small when they are born, kappa grow throughout their entire lives. Adolescents are as tall as an amanita, and by middle-age the kappa are taller than a mandragora and still growing. Elder kappa can grow to twice the height of a mandragora or higher. The Dragon Emperor himself is nearly 15 feet high, which is part of the reason why his power is nearly unchallenged.
The kappa are organized into tribes, each with its own territory and its own paths through the Wastes. The tribal paths are set by the shamans, who consult with the kappa ancestors on all decisions of import and advise the tribe on matters both spiritual and temporal. It is because of the shamans that there are any kappa left in the Wastes at all, because when the Dragon Emperor united the tribes and whipped them into a horde to assault the Kingdom of Flowers, some shamans defied the Dragon Emperor's warlocks and proclaimed that the ancestors looked with anger on his actions. The kappa had been exiled to the Wastes for long-ago deeds, they said, and should not leave until they properly atoned. Some kappa from these tribes have even come to the Kingdom of Flowers to oppose the Dragon Emperor, who they view as a heretic and a blasphemer.
Kappa tend to be fatalistic and serious, with little aptitude for risk-taking and a heavy focus on tradition, but the conquering of the Kingdom of Flowers is causing massive changes to their culture. Some tribes have abandoned their shamans entirely, raising up the Dragon Emperor's warlocks as their advisors and worshipping hideous Things from beyond the Star Road. Some tribes some almost lost, unsure of how to behave in the face of the abundance that surrounds them. Harsh traditions that favor conservation of resources, protecting hunting grounds, and avoiding or or utterly destroying enemies have little place in a land where the earth freely offers its bounty and waters run clear under the open sky. Regardless of how the Dragon Emperor's conquest ends, the kappa will never be the same.
Statistics
Cost to Play: 0 points
Stat Modifiers: Strength +3, Speed -3, Constitution +2, Willpower +1, Intelligence -1, Charisma -2.
Size: Medium or Large. Players of kappa may pay an additional 5 points at character creation to start as Large.
Special Abilities:
- Claws and Fangs: Kappa have claws and fangs with a Damage of 4. They may learn a combat skill to use these as a weapon.
- Growth: Kappa who do not start as Large may represent their growth over time by paying 1 CP per adventure until they reach 5 CP spent, at which point they gain Large size. Elderly kappa who have lived at least 75 years may pay an additional 10 CP to become Huge. Kappa have legends of heroes who have grown even larger than this, but it's so uncommon that it may as well be mythical.
- Limited Regeneration: Kappa do not heal any faster than anyone else, but they do heal perfectly, with even lost limbs regrowing to full function. They can heal all crippling or disfiguring injuries as described under the Regeneration Talent.
- Tough Skin: Kappa are covered in scales, to say nothing of their hardened shells. They have AR 5 on their limbs and head, AR 8 on their chest, and their massive shells give them AR 15 on their torsos if attacked from behind. However, all kappa armor must be custom-made to fit them. The penalties are increased by -2 for all worn armor, and all greaves, bracers, and helmets have doubled penalties.