Ch'Tari

The Ch’Tari are bipedal ratlike humanoids. Native to the Dragon Graveyard, a wide valley nestled among the mountains east of Druskeden, the Ch’Tari are said to have descended from rats who grew strong and intelligent by feasting upon the rotting bodies of ancient dragons. Whether or not this myth is accurate, it is true that the Ch’Tari regularly feed upon the remains of the many dragons who travel to the Graveyard to die. Regardless of their origin, the Ch’Tari have become hardy and wily scavengers, eking out a meager existence from beneath the gaze of Migdalia’s more prevalent races.

Personality: Ch’Tari are wild, fierce, and primitive. They are survivalists in a grim terrain, and their outlook is colored by the harsh realities of their existence: barren land, hazardous natural features, and deadly predators, from cannibalistic dragons seeking fresh meat to cleanse their palate, to necromancers and graverobbers hunting after the legendary hordes of fallen wyrms.

Physical Description: Ch’Tari look like nothing so much as humanoid rats. They stand upright, roughly as tall as a human (averaging about 5 ½ feet tall and 155 pounds). They have long snouts, pink ears, and pronounced incisors, like ordinary rodents. Their bodies are covered in rough fur, ranging in shade from white through gray and brown to black, sometimes solid and sometimes patterned. Fur patterns tend to run in Ch’Tari families.

The Ch’Tari have five-fingered hands, opposable thumbs, and sharp claws. Their long tails are mostly hairless and have the same pink coloration as their ears and palms. Their legs are bent like those of rats and have only three toes.

Ch’Tari often wear earrings in their pierced ears, necklaces made of dragon bone or teeth, and similar ornamentation that humans usually consider savage. The dragon blood and meat consumed by thousands of generations of Ch’Tari have elevated them above common rodents, though their lifespan remains comparatively short when compared to Migdalia’s other races.

Race	Adulthood	Middle Age	Old	Venerable	Maximum Age
Ch’Tari	5 years	15 years	23 years	30 years	+1d10 years

Race	Base Height	Height Modifier	Base Weight	Weight Modifier
Ch’Tari, male	5' 2''	+2d4	140 lb.	x(1d6)lb.
Ch’Tari, female	4' 9''	+2d4	105 lb.	x(1d6)lb.

Relations: Ch’Tari are relatively unknown throughout Migdalia, and are often confused with wererats. Many dwarves know of the Ch’Tari, though the two races seem content to ignore the other’s presence. A few human graverobbers or sages studying dragons have come into contact with the Ch’Tari, though these meetings are just as often hostile as friendly.

Alignment: Many Ch’Tari are evil, or at least a very grim neutral. Whether this is due to their nature or the harsh environment in which they dwell is unknown.

Religion: Ch’Tari do not generally venerate deities, instead worshiping a host of spirits and esteemed ancestors. A few Ch’Tari, however, have turned their backs on the spirits, instead offering prayers to Marrok and Kalosh. These Ch’Tari, surrounded and sustained by death and rot, seem to recognize Marrok and Kalosh as “greater spirits” of death and rot, worthy of veneration above the other, weaker spirits.

Language: The native Ch’Tari language is a combination of barks, squeals, and clicks, bearing a strong resemblance to the noises of common rodents. It has its own script, but it is rarely used except to leave warnings or directions for other packs. Ch’Tari usually learn to speak Dwarven, though they punctuate both it clicks and squeaks and a peculiar stuttering repetition.

Names: A Ch’Tari name consists of three to five syllables, separated by a apostrophe (which represents a pause in some dialects, a clicking sound in others), and ending with the name of the individual’s clan, such as chek, tch, tck, tek, tuk ,or uk. Sometimes the syllable oh- is added to the beginning of a name to designate an individual of great age and wisdom (Oh-chi’chek is a respected elder of the Chek, or Teachers, tribe). To show that a Ch’Tari has gained great honor in his tribe, the syllable ti- is added before the name of the tribe (Rik’tik’tichek has distinguished himself in the Teachers tribe). Most Ch’Tari use shortened versions of their name when among their own tribe, and progressively shorter names with less familiar Ch’Tari. Among other races, nicknames such as “Longsnout” are commonly used. This is especially true among Ch’Tari who work closely with humans, since even trusted humans have problems pronouncing Ch’Tari names.

Common names: Common Names: At’tok’tuk, Chet’rop’tik, Mack’uk, Mat’irt’chuk, Mat’tck, Oh-chi’chek, Rik’tik’tichek, Ropp’tch’tch, Raun’tek, T’tep’mok, Tchick’chuk, Tir’chik’tep, and Z’orr’tek

Adventures: The step from a Ch’Tari’s scavenging lifestyle to the life of an adventurer is not a large one, and Ch’Tari adventurers are usually motivated to make as much of their short lives as they can.

Ch'Tari Racial Traits

* +2 Constitution, -2 Charisma. Ch’Tari are hale and hardy, but crude by the standards of other races.

* Medium size. As Medium creatures, Ch'Tari have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.

* Ch'Tari base land speed is 40 feet.

* Low-Light Vision: Ch’Tari can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. They retain the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.

* +2 racial saving throw against poison and disease. Generations of feasting on rotting corpses have made Ch’Tari resistant to illness and toxins.

* +2 racial bonus on Hide and Move Silently checks. Ch’Tari are naturally stealthy.

* A Ch’Tari’s sharp claws or teeth deal 1d4 points of lethal damage with a successful unarmed strike.

* +2 racial bonus on Climb and Listen checks. Ch’Tari have claws and tails adapted for climbing, and keen ears.

* Keen Scent: Ch’Tari have a keen sense of smell. A Ch’Tari may spend a feat to acquire the scent extraordinary ability.

* Automatic Languages: Ch'Tari.

* Bonus Languages: Draconic, Dwarven, Impara, Travek.

* Favored Class: Rogue.

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