Barani

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Barani

Sometimes the light burns.

Origins

Eons ago, there was a prophecy of the End of the World. This prophecy came to pass in the fullness of days, and a vast Celestial Host entered the World to devour it in Light.

That Host failed.

The world carried on, the various Gods, Powers, and Portents involved moved on to another vast scheme, and life went on. Except that the survivors of that vast Celestial Host were stranded in the world, their destiny thwarted. Thousands of them perished of despair, hubris, and simple attrition. But thousands more of them settled down, adapted to their new home, and slowly, over ages of time, these exalted destroyers came to resemble the races of the Prime Material more and more, until they became the eerie race known as the Barani.

Culture

Barani today are a humanoid race like many others, except they still carry that spark of the Scourging Light which defined their race from the very beginning. Barani today are neither good nor evil, any more than any other race, and their gifts of light are often tinged with destruction, as they are still fated, some day, to end the world.

Barani live as any other humanoids, marrying and having children, trading with their neighbors and existing in the world. But every moment of every day, all Barani feel the weight of their destiny, whether they want to fulfill it or not. This eroding pressure of doom pervades Barani culture, and even though they are bright creatures of the light, there is a melancholy which hangs over their communities like a pall.

Growing Up Barani

Barani children are born bearing their lifetime allocation of The Spark. Births are a time of celebration, but as always in Barani culture, that happiness is tinged with melancholy as every successful birth robs the parents of a portion of their Spark, shortening their lives by a noticeable amount. Due to this, Barani families rarely have more than four children.

Barani children are extremely active, walking at three months and talking at the age of 1 year. Barani live in loose enclaves, several or many Barani families in loose clusters, often mixed in with other humanoid races. Barani tend to follow the customs of their adoptive culture, with the notable exception that all Barani, everywhere, celebrate the Summer Solstice as a holiday they call the Day of Light, where gifts are exchanged and prayers are offered that the coming year will be better than the one just passed.

Barani mature very quickly, reaching full adulthood by the age of ten, and they live long lives, with a distinct middle age period that begins at age forty. They do not suffer from a period of dotage, and instead die at the same age as humans do. However, a Barani's maximum age is decreased by ten years for every child they have successfully sired or birthed.

Economy

Barani are a very 'average' race in terms of their economic impact. Barani are skilled diplomats, not craftsmen, and their racial abilities tend toward the martial. Many Barani become healers and warriors, and as a result, their greatest economic impact is the money they make as adventurers and the fact that they often serve in military units or the Town Watch.

Barani tend to be quite fearless and have potent abilities against Undead. It should come as no surprise that the race with the celestial Spark contains many priests and clerics. Barani who serve as representatives of clergy make the largest contributions to the economy of the world. Barani frequently live in or administer large temples, cathedrals, and monasteries, and as such, their impact on their neighbors can be quite considerable.

Customs

Barani tend to observe the customs and traditions of the larger cultures around them, with the notable addition of their own holiday, the Day of Light. Barani feel the faint pressure of their destiny at all times, and this vague sense that they should be destroying everything they see can lend them a palpable air of melancholy. It is hard to get excited about things when having a family shortens your life and everything you gain just makes you want to break it.

That said, many Barani work very hard to abrogate their destiny and draw joy from the world around them, the world that has taken them in as natives even though they wish for its destruction. Other Barani seek to fulfill their destiny, and as a result, break and burn and kill with a sense of grim duty.

Regardless of their feelings, Barani strive to gift their light to everyone they meet. The Day of Light celebration demands that Barani bring light to all they meet.

Lifespan and Burial

Barani live as long as humans do, but their childhood is short and they do not suffer from a dotage period. As a result, Barani effectively have more years of life than their lifespan would indicate.

As for burial customs, Barani will observe the customs of the cultures they live among, but only in a perfunctory manner. Barani know that the thing that matters is The Spark, and a Barani who has died of old age no longer has any Spark, and indeed, their bodies no longer have the ability to support a Spark at all.

Relations with Others

Barani are generally well liked by their neighbors, and this level of regard increases as the number of undead in the area increases. Barani make excellent diplomats, judges, and watchmen, as well as being superb clergy.

That said, Barani can be a bit of a downer. The racial melancholy which dogs them is reflected in their demeanor and speech if they are not carefully on their guard against it. As a result, Barani have a reputation as being as grim-faced and lugubrious as any race out there, even though their powers are rooted in Light.

Since Barani have a fairly short childhood, they also tend to be seen as a bit boring and prosaic in the eyes of the same-aged youth of neighboring races. Who wants to hang out with an adult? These prejudices, however undeserved, sometimes linger in communities with many Barani.

Starting Height and Weight

Gender	Base Height	Height Modifier	Weight	Weight Modifier
Male	5 ft. 2 in.	+2d8 in. (5 ft. 4 in. - 6 ft. 6 in.)	110 lbs.	+(2d8×5 lbs.) (120 - 190 lbs.)
Female	5 ft. 0 in.	+2d8 in. (5 ft. 2 in. - 6 ft. 4 in.)	90 lbs.	+(2d8×5 lbs.) (100 - 170 lbs.)

Starting Ages

Adulthood	Intuitive	Self-Taught	Trained
10 years	+2d6 years (12 - 22 years)	+3d6 years (13 - 28 years)	+4d6 years (14 - 34 years)

PC's

Barani have no class or alignment restrictions.

Standard Racial Traits

All Barani have the following Standard Racial Advantages:

• Attributes: Barani may choose to gain one of the following ability score bonus sets when creating their character. No ability score may ever be modified above a 20 or below a 7.
  • +2 to two different stats, -2 to one stat
  • +2 to one stat, +1 to three different stats, -2 to one stat
  • +4 to one stat, -2 to two different stats

• Size: Barani are Medium creatures and thus receive no bonuses or penalties due to their size.

• Type: Barani have the Outsider type, with the Native subtype.

• Base Speed: Barani have a base land speed of 30 feet.

• Languages: Barani begin play speaking Common and Celestial. Barani with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following: Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, Gnome, Halfling, and Sylvan. See the Linguistics skill page for more information about these languages.

• Normal Vision (Ex): Barani, like Humans, require bright light to see without penalty. Creatures in dim light gain concealment (20% miss chance) against Barani trying to target them.

• Harbinger of Dawn (Sp): As a standard action, Barani can cast Light as a spell-like ability. They can manifest the light source on their bodies or an item held in their hand. It can, for example, appear as a halo, a third eye or a glowing sword, though it is entirely up to the Barani. At 10th level, the Barani also gains the ability to cast Daylight as a spell-like ability once per day. At 20th level, the Barani gains the ability to cast Searing Light as a spell-like ability once per day. At 30th level, the Barani gains the ability to cast Sunburst as a spell-like ability once per day. All spells from Harbinger of Dawn require a standard action to cast, use the Barani's character level as the caster level, and use the highest of the Barani's mental ability scores (Int, Wis or Cha), selected at character creation, to calculate any save DC's.

Major Racial Traits

Choose one of the following Major Racial Traits:

• Celestial Resistance (Su) : Barani with this racial trait have energy resistance (ER) versus negative energy. The value of the ER is 5 plus the Barani's character level. This ER does not stack with other sources of ER/negative, instead only the highest value available is used.

• Exultant (Ex) : Barani with this racial trait choose either the Diplomacy skill or the Knowledge (planes) skill, and may add half their character level as a racial bonus to that skill (round down, minimum 1). At 10th level, they may add half their character level as a racial bonus to the other skill (round down). Both skills become class skills at 1st level if they are not already.

• Lightborn (Sp) : Once per day as an immediate action, a Barani with this racial trait may cast Protection from Evil as a spell-like ability, with a caster level equal to her character level. The save DC of the spell is based on the higher of the Barani's mental ability scores (Int, Wis or Cha), chosen at character creation. The effects of the Protection from Evil spell only apply to the Barani herself, and unlike the actual spell, the duration of the spell is always 1 round.

• Positive Energy Affinity (Su): A Barani with this racial trait may add +1 point of effect per three character levels (drop fractions, minimum 1) to all effects you express (spells, items, class abilities, etc) which use positive energy. This applies to all heals, for example.

Minor Racial Traits

Choose one of the following Minor Racial Traits:

• Arbitration (Ex) : Barani with this racial trait gain a +2 racial bonus to Perception checks. This bonus increases to +4 if they have 10 or more ranks in the skill, +6 if they have 20 or more ranks in the skill, and +8 if they have 30 or more ranks in the skill. Perception becomes a class skill if it is not already.

• Dogmatic Resolve (Su) : Barani with this racial trait receive a +2 racial bonus on all saving throws against fear.

• Divine artistry (Ex): A Barani with this racial trait may add a +2 racial bonus to any Craft skills in which she has ranks. This bonus increases to +4 if she has 10 or more ranks, +6 if she has 20 or more ranks, or +8 if she has 30 or more ranks.

• Elemental Resistance (Ex): A Barani with this racial trait may choose either Acid, Cold or Electricity, and gain 5 points of Energy Resistance (ER) against that element. At 10th level, the ER of the chosen element improves to +10, and a second element may be selected. The new element gains ER 5. At 20th level, the first chosen element improves to ER 15, the second chosen element improves to ER 10, and the final element is gained with ER 5. Energy Resistance does not stack with other sources of energy resistance of the same type. Instead, only the highest available value is used.