Merlings (3.5e Race)

=Merlings=

Summary::Aquatic Humans who live on continental reefs.

Personality
Merlings are reclusive creatures, spending their days in their underwater kingdom. Except at areas of trade on shore you rarely see merlings, especially inland, where they may be deprived of their water. Beneath the sea they are bustling as humans, but the race as a whole are soft spoken, stubborn, and mildly xenophobic. They are mired in tradition and rarely break rank, for better or worse.

Physical Description
Merlings are of lithe, waif-like human shape, with smooth glossy skin of multicolored hue. They come in a range of colors, from pale yellow to deep blue, and sometimes possess multicolored stripes, chevrons, or other designs on them. They have red eyes, every one of them, with a double eyelid, clear, for swimming. They have ribbed fins for ears and fins coming off of their arms, legs, large back wing/fins, and small fins on their chest or shoulder.

They have their gills on their neck, but can breathe air as well. They survive on a mixed diet of seaweed and fish. They're usually found by the edges of underwater continental shelves.

Relations
Merlings do interact with surface dwellers for trade and business, but seem rather standoffish for anything else. Surface concerns belong on the surface, and so long as no dire threat pierces beneath the wave, what do they care?

Alignment
They may have any alignment, but they tend towards lawful.

Lands
Merlings live in underwater kingdoms and are rarely found on the surface. When they are, it is in climates of moisture to keep wet.

Religion
Traditional theology has Merlings worshiping Otohime the Sea Dragon, a goddess who protects the oceans. More modern days shows increased worship of local gods picked up from docks and travel.

Language
Merlings speak Common and Elven.

Names
Names are often done to the theme of jewelry, stones, and beautiful sea structures. "Ruby", "Pearl", and "Coral" are all common names.

Racial Traits

 * ,, , : Merlings are wise and confident, but lack physical capabilities.
 * : Merlings are aquatic humanoids, and have the aquatic and human subtypes.
 * Medium: As Medium creatures, merlings have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
 * Merling base land speed is 30 feet.
 * Merling base swim speed is 30 feet.
 * Amphibious (Ex): Merlings can breath both air and water.
 * Merlings have a +8 racial bonus on any Swim check to perform some special action or avoid a hazard. They can always choose to take 10 on a Swim check, even if distracted or endangered. Merlings can use the run action while swimming, provided they swim in a straight line.
 * Merlings must remain moist. They may stay out of water for 1 hour per point of Constitution.  After this time, the character must make a Constitution check each hour (DC 10, +1 for each previous check) or take 1d6 points of nonlethal damage.
 * Add +1 to the Difficulty Class for all saving throws against water spells cast by merlings. This adjustment stacks with those from similar effects.
 * +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against creatures in the water.
 * Low-Light Vision (Ex): A merling can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. He retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
 * Spell-Like Ability: 1/day&mdash;Speak With Animals (aquatic animals only, duration 1 minute). A merling with a Charisma score of at least 10 can also has the following spell-like abilities: 1/day&mdash;dancing lights, ghost sound, prestidigitation.  Caster level is 1st. The save DC is Charisma-based.
 * Automatic Languages: Common, Elven.
 * Bonus Languages: Aquan, Draconic, and Sylvan.
 * Favored Class: or
 * Level Adjustment: +Level Adjustment::0
 * Effective Character Level: Effective Character Level::1