Kraanicher Racial Information - Saltwave RPG Campaign

Kraanicher

The Master Race?

Kraanicher humans are literally bred for noble traits. They are very clannish, and often look down upon other humans and less refined races. Kraanichers make up 20% of the human population of Lebensbrüke. They have a bronze skin color, dark eyes, and hair, and are tall, intelligent, healthy, and attractive. For an archetypical description, think Moorish Spaniards, although any Latin to Middle Eastern appearance might fit.

The Kraanicher race originally escaped religious persecution in their homeland on the Qoolmian Peninsula in the LY 1300's. Their atheism was a sore affront to the passionate Komatsine believers and the families were ordered to accept the sacraments of Komatscience or be banished. The clans who accepted banishment all had ties to the Kraanicher family and assumed that racial name when they settled in northwestern Jaastenland. They established their own colony in what is now Lebensbrüke and expanded across western Jaastenland until they reached the Southern Patriarchies.

Defining Characteristics and Culture

Kraanichers as a race do not believe in any gods or higher powers. Instead, they believe that each person alone controls his or her own destiny, and that personal perfection and enlightenment is the ultimate goal of life. To move closer to the ideal of perfection, Kraanichers engage in sanctioned marriages and breeding for children with desriable traits. Young men and women are tested upon their eighteenth birthday by the master genealogists of the Office of Pure Lineage. A listed of approved marriage partners is then provided. Women who bear children from approved marriages receive payments from the Office of Pure Lineage. Intimate relationships outside of marriage are very common and looked upon as normal. Contraceptive techniques generally prevent issue from such liaisons, although Kraanicher men who consort with "lesser races" sometimes ignore contraception (and, likewise, any resulting children).

Kraanichers who fail to uphold the traditions, mores, and customs of the race are stricken from the Rolls of Pure Lineage and disinherited. Worship or advocacy of any god, faith, or religion is obvious grounds for removal of sanction. Refusal to recognize the decisions of the Office of Pure Lineage or failing to tithe (10% of income gained) also draws frowns and may eventually cause the person to be stricken from the rolls.

Professions and Wealth

Kraanichers who do not have adventuring classes are almost all aristocrats or experts with a mercantile focus. Those with adventuring classes tend toward (in order of prestige): psion, fighter (military officer or knight), monk, wizard, rogue (for the business applications of all those skill points), and psychic warrior. Kraanichers have a long tradition of seeking perfection and enlightenment through meditation and the path of the monk. They usually feel that sorcerers are too undisciplined, and seldom try to unlock sorcerous powers by choice.

The incidence of psionic ability among Kraanichers is very high and is something they greatly admire. Quite a few learn to use psionic powers, becoming psions or (less frequently) psychic warriors. Even those without the time or natural ability to use psionic powers study some elementary psychic disciplines. The psionic tattoo each Kraanicher adult wears helps focus psychic energy and makes possible some minor talents, like identification of other Kraanichers, contraception, pain relief, increased memory and concentration ability (but not in combat) and occasional empathy with other members of the race.

Many Kraanichers belong to large, wealthy families. They generally look out for one another and make opportunities for others of their race. This makes the Kraanichers quite wealthy in comparison to others. Most Kraanichers are nobles, gentry, or merchant traders (who buy and sell goods, instead of making the products themselves). They tend to live well and keep to themselves. All adults are required to donate 10% of their income to the Office of Pure Lineage to support the research and breeding incentive programs.

Kraanicher Racial Traits

Kraanichers have all of the human racial traits from the Player's Handbook, PLUS the following mandatory modifiers:

+2 Intelligence, +2 Charisma: Kraanichers are bred for intelligence and attractive, confident natures.
Psionic Race: Kraanichers are naturally psionic, and gain 1 psionic power point at 1st level. This does not allow them to manifest psionic powers unless they take levels in a manifesting class, but does give them a psionic reserve and access to psionic feats.
Psionic Tattoo: Upon completing the Test of Pure Lineage at majority, each Kraanicher man and woman is marked with a psionically active tattoo. The specific figure and style vary with individual taste. The tattoo is powered by the person's own life energy and serves as a focus for several minor powers. Specifically, the tattoo allows the Kraanicher to identify other pure Kraanichers within 30 ft. by concentration, and to tell if a Kraanicher of the opposite sex would be an approved mate. It allows the wearer to activate personal contraception, biofeedback-based pain relief, and enhanced concentration. All of these abilities require a full round action (at least) to activate and are not considered useful in a combat situation. The tattoo also serves as a universal identification and tracking tag, as deemed necessary by the Office of Pure Lineage.
Lack of Faith: Kraanichers cannot be raised or resurrected from death by any means short of a wish. Those who have no faith may not benefit from the faith of others. This is not a function of the cleric's unwillingness to perform the ritual, but the deity's unwillingness to grant this favor to the Kraanicher. Kraanichers can, however, benefit from a reincarnation spell, although this poses ethical issues for the druid and the deceased Kraanicher, both. Very wealthy Kraanichers sometimes make use of clones and astral seeds as a sort of insurance policy. Recognizing the Kraanichers' contempt for faith, many clerics will politely refuse to aid Kraanichers with healing or other spells. Others cheerfully provide spellcasting, but at double the going rate or more to compensate for "the difficulty in overcoming the lack of faith that helps power the spell."
Prohibited Classes: Kraanichers cannot gain levels in any class that relies upon divine magic for spells or spell-like and supernatural abilities. This includes the cleric, druid, and paladin classes. Kraanichers can become rangers, but do not gain spellcasting ability. Kraanicher rangers gain other abilities in place of spells: Fast Movement (Ex) at 6th level (+10 base land speed in light or medium armor), Nature's Blessing (Su) at 11th level (use a standard action to add a +4 bonus to Constitution, Dexterity, or Wisdom score once per day for one minute per class level), Healing Touch (Sp) at 13th level (use either neutralize poison or remove disease once per day as a caster of half the ranger's class level), and Freedom of Movement (Sp) at 16th level (as the spell, once per day, as a caster of half the ranger's class level).
Automatic Languages: High Kraanicher and Smeisserander (Common). High Kraanicher is related to Smeisserander, but is reserved for Kraanicher use and never taught to outsiders.
Favored Class: Psion.
Level Adjustment: +0.

Conversion and Expulsion

Rare individuals who become believers and convert to another faith may ignore the prohibited class restriction, but are stricken from the Rolls of Pure Lineage, lose the power of their psionic tattoos, suffer a -8 circumstance penalty on any interactions with pure Kraanichers (who can detect impure status through the lack of positive response from their own tattoos), and are still bound by the lack of faith restriction.