Blemmyes (3.5e Race)

Author: the bluez in the dungeon (talk) Date Created: 2nd December 2024 Status: Complete Editing: Clarity edits only please

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Blemmyes

The blemmyes are a nomadic warrior race from the arid stretches of the desert. Famous for their peculiar physical appearance, Blemmyes lack heads, instead having a face visible on the upper chest. They are known for their strong character and martial culture. Their way of life is centered around resilience, survival, and honor in battle.

An ancient depiction of a blemmye ambassador.

History and Origins

The origins of the blemmyes are shrouded in myth and legend. Some say they were born from a divine curse that deprived them of their heads (they were originally humans), but their warrior spirit remained intact. Other tales speak of an ancient race of conquerors, while others describe them as beings created by desert deities to rule the sandland. Despite the mysterious aura surrounding them, the blemmyes are known as an ancient race, having faced and overcome countless challenges over the centuries. Their nomadic nature and warrior culture have fostered a strong sense of identity, while also enabling them to adapt to the changing world around them.

Physical Description

Blemmyes are a robust and imposing race. Their main characteristic is the absence of a head: their face is located at the center of their chest, under the neck, with strong features and a mouth capable of expressing emotions and speech. This appearance does not hinder their skills as warriors and hunters, as their physical structure is exceptionally resilient. Their skin is thick and dark, adapted to the harsh exposure to the desert sun, and their bodies are muscular and massive, the result of generations of life in hostile environments. Their hands are large and powerful, capable of wielding heavy weapons.

They wear light garments, often of light colours, but blue and black are also common. Their clothes cover almost all of their bodies, as a way to protect their skin from the sun and the flaying sand.

Personality and Alignment

Blemmyes are known for their warrior spirit and discipline. They are proud, loyal, and deeply connected to their community and their land. While they take pride in their strength and battle prowess, they are also honorable, respecting alliances and treaties when made in good faith. Their nature often leans toward chaos due to their nomadic lifestyle and the need to adapt to unforeseen situations, and a good part of them are desert bandits, either for their evil nature or because the harsh conditions of the desert made them so.

Customs and Society

The blemmyes are a tribal culture, deeply rooted in traditions and values such as strength, courage, and honor. Their societies are organized into clans, each led by a chief chosen for their combat skills and wisdom. The hierarchy within the clans is based on merit, and physical challenges or trials of strength are common to determine an individual's position. The Blemmyes are also known for their ritual dances and tribal music, which accompany many of their ceremonies. Although primarily warriors, they also value trade and diplomacy, often forming alliances with other races to ensure the survival and well-being of their communities.

Lands and Relations

The blemmyes are a nomadic race that lives in the desert, frequently moving in search of water and food. Their camps are typically made up of light, easily dismantled tents, allowing them to travel swiftly. They are skilled at navigating the dunes and surviving in hostile environments, knowing every corner of the desert and making the best use of its natural resources. While the Blemmyes may seem isolated, they are known to establish temporary alliances with other desert or tribal peoples. Their interactions with other cultures can be complicated, but they are generally respected for their strength and honor.

Religion and Spirituality

The blemmyes are connected to the spirits of the desert and the natural elements that govern their land. Their religion is polytheistic, worshiping deities tied to the sun, wind, and sand. They believe that inner strength and courage are divine gifts, and their religious rituals often involve symbolic battles and trials of endurance. Ancestor worship is also central to their spirituality, and blemmyes frequently consult the wise and shamans of their tribes for divine visions before undertaking important battles or making crucial decisions.

Language and onomastics

The blemmyes speak Common with harsh and guttural voices, and a simplified lexicon, reflecting their warrior culture and the harsh nature of their land. They primarily speak among themselves in tribal dialects and prefer pictography as way of writing, composed of stylized symbols that represent natural events, deities, and concepts of strength. Their names tend to be short and impactful, often composed of strong sounds that reflect the characteristics of the individual, such as strength, speed, or endurance.

Typical male names: Drosk, Valgor, Hram, Khadok, Teroth.

Female typical names: Sennah, Ghorra, Thalr, Yreth, Okrana.

Racial Traits

• +2 Strength: They have buff bodies, with broad shoulders and strong arms.
• Humanoid (Blemmyes): Despite being humanoids, they have still an unusual physiology 
• Medium: As a Medium creature, a blemmyes has no special bonuses or penalties due to its size.
• Blemmyes base land speed is 30 feet.  
• Blemmyes Subtype: They have the Monstrous trait. The same increase in cost for armors, applies to glasses, masks and similar items that one should usually wear on its face. 
• Headless: Being effectively headless grants blemmyes immunity to decapitation and the vorpal special quality, or similar effects that would target the head. They can't wear any kind of helm or headgear, losing the correspondent magic item slot. 
• Nomadic Desert Dweller (Ex): They gain the Endurance, Desert Dweller and Nomad Fortitude feats for free, and count as if having the Heat Endurance^Sand feat for requirements. 
• Bronze Face (Ex): Once per day, they can strengthen their body and mind, and retry a failed save as an immediate action, taking the second result. They are then staggered for the next round. 
• Dune Tumbling (Ex): A typical blemmye exercise consist in tumbling and doing carthwheels down desert dunes. This gives them the ability to Tumble with no impediment on sand, or similar loose soil, and in these conditions they may throw sand to in a 5-feet radius at any point of their tumbling movement, blinding everyone in the area for one round (Fortitude DC 10 + 1/2 HD + Strength modifier to negate). Additionally they may qualify for the Sand Attacker feat with Tumble ranks instead of Sleigth of Hand, and may use its benefits with the Tumble skill. 
• Brute Training: They gain a +2 racial bonus to Jump, Intimidate and Tumble checks, and they are always class skills for them. They may use Strength instead of Dexterity for Tumble checks.
• Automatic Languages: Common.
• Bonus Languages: Any, except secret languages.
• Favored Class: Barbarian or Fighter
• Level Adjustment: +0
• Effective Character Level: 1

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