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Legacy of the Dragons
Vallorian Medium Humanoid Hit Dice: 1d10 (5 hp), dying/dead –1/–10 Initiative: +2 Speed: 20 feet, base 30 feet AC: 19 (+2 Dexterity, +5 swarm† breastplate, +2 long shield), touch 12, flat-footed 17 Base Attack/Grapple: +1/+1 Attack: Bloodthirster† longsword +5 melee (1d8+2) Full Attack: Bloodthirster† longsword +5 melee (1d8+2) Space/Reach: 5 feet/5 feet (Face/Reach: 5 feet by 5 feet/5 feet) Special Attacks: Cast compelling command 2/day Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 feet, SR 11 Saves: Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +0 Abilities: Str 11, Dex 14, Con 10, Int 15, Wis 10, Cha 8 Skills: Climb +3, Handle Animal +3, Intimidate +3, Swim +4 Feats: Bonded Item (bloodthirster longsword), Weapon Focus (longsword) Environment: Any subterranean Organization: Patrol (3–18 plus one 3rd-level leader), war band (6–36 plus two 3rd-level sergeants and one 5th-level commander), or outpost (10–200 plus ten 3rd-level sergeants, five 5th-level overseers, two 8th-level masters, and one 12th-level overlord) Challenge Rating: 1 Treasure: Standard Advancement: By character class Level Adjustment: +1 Vallorians are a degenerate, malicious subrace of humanity. These creatures have small, slender, frames, pale skin, snow-white hair, and large, black eyes. Many males and females shave their heads bald, while others style their hair in strange, elaborate patterns. From deep within their subterranean realms, Vallorians plot to invade the surface using their bizarre and deadly living weapons. In the ancient days, an entire kingdom of humanity disappeared shortly before the rise of the dramojh. A mighty human king named Vallor led his people beneath the earth rather than face possible defeat at the hands of the dramojh. Legends tell that this king and his followers had the power to win the struggle but were too self-centered to consider sacrificing any of their number for the good of all—and thus the Vallorians descended into the depths of the earth. For untold generations they lived within the deepest caves. Inbreeding, magical experimentation, and natural adaptation transformed them into a degenerate race of subterranean creatures. Over the centuries, their legends have changed to include tales that blame the other human factions for turning against them and working with the dramojh to force them beneath the earth. Now, they plot and wait for an opportunity to take what they see as rightfully theirs.
The Vallorians have learned to manipulate living creatures to create a wide variety of items. A Vallorian sword is a specialized creature crafted from an undulating vat of protoflesh. It has a hard, sharp-edged carapace and can smell blood and lunge at an opponent as its Vallorian master wields it. Vallorians’ armor is made of living creatures that cloak them in protective shells and heal them of their wounds. The Vallorians gained this knowledge by forging a pact with a being of pure malevolence, a dark god known as Harzahk, who gave them the secrets of proto-life and fleshcrafting in return for their obedience. Since that time, the Vallorians have followed the dictates of Harzahk’s priests. They offer living sacrifices, preferably intelligent humanoids, to the writhing, tentacled pools of proto-flesh from which they craft their strange weapons and armor. During times of famine, when the fungus crops bear little edible food and the great hordes of underworld herd lizards and beetles dwindle, this sickening mass of pulpy flesh also serves the Vallorians as an emergency food source. The Vallorian’s statistics here reflect a typical 1st-level warrior.
Combat Vallorians are vicious and fanatical in battle, as befits a race that blames humanity for its current plight. When spurred into battle by the Harzahkite priests, they fight to the death and never yield ground. However, they are far from mindless killers. They prefer to sacrifice inexperienced troops and slaves to draw out their enemies’ abilities, then respond with ambushes and other tactics that build on the information they have gathered. Spell-Like Abilities (Sp): Vallorians can cast compelling command twice per day as a 1st-level magister. The save DC against this spell is DC 13.
Vallorian Society Within their underworld settlements, the Vallorians have built a highly stratified society in which an individual’s clan dictates much of his lot in life. The nobles that led the Vallorians into their self-imposed exile founded a society based on inheritance and social position. Each clan has a specific task charged to it, and its members are expected to perform that task to the best of their ability. For example, the Stonehammer clan specializes in masonry and construction, while the Swiftblades are soldiers and war leaders. Only Vallorians who display exceptional skill with magic or weaponry can rise above their clan’s station. Such individuals are placed into elite training cadres at a young age. If they develop their talents, they are allowed to take as a surname the name of one of the five royal houses: Tyrgar, Philomon, Ulthar, Grevin, or Cyrthrik. Otherwise, trainees remain without a surname, placing them above the other clans but still below the five royal ones. The royal clans rule by means of clever politicking and their influence in the religious hierarchy. They have divided
