Gokiburi (3.5e Race)



=Gokiburi=

Summary::Insect-like quadruped aliens from the stars with sensitive antenna.

Personality
Gokiburi are not native to this world. Born far away on a distant planet, the first of the "gokes" landed as refugees from a war which consumed their place of origin. Alien to all, they had difficulty interacting with native species, resulting in much paranoia and hostility. While the gokes have settled in, the paranoia remains, for they know they do not belong here. For some, they wish to change that and make peace, for others it drives xenophobia, and then those with evil in their alien hearts see it as a challenge, a challenge to be destroyed and conquered.

Among themselves, gokiburi have a hard working culture dominated by duty and pride. Though mental and chemical compulsions they work together like ants, resulting in an efficient culture to be sure, but one rather devoid of mirth or personality. Alone or in times of peace and sloth the Goke's real personalities come forth, with a culture as varies as humans. Like most humans they are neutral in most things, whose influence do not extend beyond their neighborhood. They can be calm, violent, wise, or foolish, at least until their sense of duty emerges once again.

Physical Description
Gokiburi evolved from some alien insect, their bodies standing as tall as a man but set upon four spindly multi-jointed legs. Similar to their legs, two multi-jointed arms lay in front, all connected to their rotund main body. From their body extends a long and thick neck which ends in a three-way split mouth evenly set about the tip, and a small eyestalk with a single alien eye built from several slits which parse the light in a strange spectrum. By the base of the neck two more stalks rise and shoot out behind the body like wings, thin and always mobile antenna which are sensitive to the slightest noise. Indeed, their hearing is acute and powerful. A rubbery layer of skin covers what would otherwise be a completely chitinous body, generally in dark colors of black, gray, brown, and dull reds and greens, further marked with splotches or bands of lighter skin.

Relations
Old paranoia streaks through the ranks of gokiburis. They are aliens on an alien world, and such intrusions tend to make more enemies than friends. For those who do befriend them though, they gain loyal allies whose sense of duty will not let them down in times of need.

Alignment
A gokiburi is capable of any alignment, but the vast majority tend to be neutral. Due to their sense of duty and pride, many are also lawful.

Lands
Originally the gokes came from a technologically advanced planet filled with humid alien jungles, vast salty deserts, and other terrain as varied as they come. It is suggested that the gokiburi were actually the second race to live upon their planet, born after the first wiped themselves out with some manner of disaster. They spread to the stars as their civilizations grew, until one day a colony of gokes discovered something which rocked their world. It is uncertain if it was a massive political uprising, or something more physical such as the corruption from some terrible secret in space, but goke turned on goke, and war enveloped their system. Likely some fight to this day, all we know of them is the refugee ship which crashed upon our lands.

While much of the technology is gone and ruined, the gokiburi are still host to strange machines and stranger designs. They favor tall asymmetrical towers, strange hive-like formations, and organic designs in their artificial constructs. The presence of the gokiburi is obvious, as their civilization never seems to match its surroundings.

Religion
The gokiburi have had little to do with religion, but are not devoid of it. They originally seemed to give simple homage to various primal forces as gods... the spirit of space, the concept of light, the whims of fortune, but few were devoted clerics. However the strong sense of duty is easily applied to religion and some gokiburi have adopted the gods of this world. Those that do are often the most outspoken and devoted members of them all.

Language
Gokiburi speak Gokia, a language of chirps, hisses, howls, and strange motions, subtly modified by chemical pheromones. A non-gokiburi may speak it, but without certain parts and pheromones the words come out "strange and broken". Most Gokiburi try to learn their surrounding language for the purpose of communication, generally common.

Names
Gokiburi have first names only, and a title generally associated with their clan, family, or occupation, whichever is most important. Thus as a gokiburi ages and grows their last name may change, from "Chiggilid of House Celeo" to "Chiggilid of the Blue Swords" to something else entirely.

Racial Traits

 * ,, , : Durable and sensitive to the world, they have little in the way of social communication and are difficult to understand.  Their thin arms do not give way to much brute force.
 * : Aliens from another world, they have little biology in relation to humankind.  While not Xenotheric, they do have access to the Gokiburi Paragon class.
 * : As medium creatures, gokiburi have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
 * Gokiburi base land speed is 30 feet.
 * Blindsense (Ex): A gokiburi's antenna grant it an unnatural sense of things around it, granting it blindsense out to close range (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 HD).  A gokiburi also has a keen sense of smell to detect pheromones unique to their kind, but it is not accurate enough to assist in blindsense.
 * Darkvision (Ex): Gokiburi can see in the dark up to 60 feet. Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and gokiburi can function just fine with no light at all.
 * Mono Eye: The strange eyestalk of the gokiburi can see things, but it sees them in a strange light. This form of vision is effective at spotting things close up and less so from afar, giving a +2 bonus to Search checks and a -2 penalty to Spot.
 * Persistent: The sense of duty is hard-coded into their genes, and with their durable bodies they can move on even as they die.  They gain Diehard as a bonus feat.  In addition when dying (below 0 hp but not yet dead) they may take a full round action instead of a standard or move action, but take 2 points of damage if they do.
 * Quadruped Stability: Walking on all four legs, a gokiburi gains a +4 bonus on ability checks made to resist being bull rushed or tripped when standing on the ground (but not when climbing, flying, riding, or otherwise not standing firmly on the ground). Due to their unique body form they must also get special armor for nonhumanoid creatures.
 * Sonic Vulnerability: The sensitivity of the gokiburi's senses to soundwaves is both boon and a bane. The gokiburi takes half again as much (+50%) damage as normal from the effect, regardless of whether a saving throw is allowed, or if the save is a success or failure.
 * Gokiburi gain a +2 racial bonus to Climb and Listen checks.
 * Automatic Languages: Common, Gokia.
 * Bonus Languages: Any (other than secret languages such as Druidic). See the Speak Language skill.
 * Favored Class:
 * Level Adjustment: +Level Adjustment::0
 * Effective Character Level: Effective Character Level::1