Donbray (3.5e Race)
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Donbray
Donbrays are a race of humanoid donkeys descended from the chevals.
History and Origins
In a distant era, some groups of chevals were captured and enslaved by colonizers, who subjected them to heavy and dangerous labor. Of these chevals, only the most resistant to fatigue survived, and therefore selectively mutated into a new race, more suited to physical work, the donbray. For centuries the donbray remained a population of slaves, used only for their vigor and strength, without having the possibility of recovering from their sorry condition.
Until, one day, a young donbray was born among them, who possessed the charismatic spirit of a leader and love for freedom. His name was Ragliomaro. Some say that he was blessed with incredible strength, perhaps the fruit of the evolution of the donbray, perhaps the gift of the Weary Mother, the god of the donbrays, to whom they prayed to be able to better bear their hardships. In any case, Ragliomaro grew up in a slave camp, toiling and wasting away like his brothers under the scorching sun. But every evening, under the light of the stars, in the cool night air, Ragliomaro listened to the stories of his people, of when they were free to run at breakneck speed across the plains and he dreamed. Every day, even if destroyed by fatigue, he awakened stronger and bigger than the day before, until, as the years passed, he acquired an incredible size, which made him stand out among his peers.
He began to talk to the other donbrays about freedom and oppression, to inflame their spirits, to teach them to fight with the work sticks and staffs that were given to them during the day, until one day, fed up with the abuses he saw, he struck and he killed one of their tormentors, giving rise to a small revolt, immediately quelled, following which he was captured and tortured before being sold at a high price to a new master. But he didn't give up, and in this new home he found others who, like him, wanted to rise up. For his rebellious attitude, he was often beaten and resold to other slavers, but thanks to his great strength and usefulness, and the fact that he was sold at a high price, none of the masters ever made the decision to kill him, but only to resell him for return to the purchase, and so Ragliomaro was able to travel far and wide, sowing revolt and the desire for freedom in countless donbrays. Like a thousand fires, the revolts lit up to flare up into a real war, at the head of which was Ragliomaro.
Despite their strong spirit, and initial success, when the slavers organized themselves, they managed to capture the donbray leader, and tortured him as they had never done in the hope of quelling the revolt. But this only pushed the donbray, more and more, to resist again and again and to try to save Ragliomaro. They succeeded, albeit with great difficulty, but Ragliomaro was no longer the same as before: the torture had broken his mind and left him incapacitated. He died shortly after his release.
This, however, did not frighten the donbrays who continued to fight, and, over time, the effects of the revolt had repercussions on politics and economic rules to the point that the donbrays were granted independence and were able to go and look for a land for themselves, to live free. Not all succeeded - many masters could not see their source of wealth thus vanish, and so some remained clandestine slaves - but enough donbrays were able to found Asinara, the donbray nation, located on a small island.
Today the donbrays are no longer slaves, at least no more than other races, but they still carry in their memory the marks of chains and whips, and they tell their children the story of the hero Ragliomaro.
Physical Description
They have a notable size, their head is that of a donkey, with long ears, ungainly teeth and deep eyes. A light mane, often decorated, runs from the head to the shoulder blades.
The rest of their body is humanoid in shape, muscular, covered with black, brown, gray, spotted, golden or white hair, and ends with a tail and mule-like legs. Their fur is soft and protects them from the cold, wind and parasites.
It is often used by the donbrays themselves to make woolen robes for the harshest periods. They wear comfortable, functional clothing made of one, two, or three types of woven fabrics in sober colors, usually to form decorative or meaningful patterns. Among them they usually wear half-shoulder capes and short skirts. For work they wear short, light trousers and sometimes tunics, both made of vegetable fibers. The more colorful clothes are reserved for priests and other important roles, or for moments of celebration.
They have no great interest in jewelry, and prefer them made of bone, shell or wood rather than metal. When they wear them they mainly choose rings, earrings and pendants to attach to their robes. Some wear bracelets, anklets, and nose rings, but most donbrays find them distasteful, as they resemble the instruments with which they were held captive.
Personality and Alignment
Their harsh history has made them reluctant to trust others, although this trait is exercised with great wisdom, another characteristic that distinguishes them. Donbrays are receptacles of contradictions, being as docile and calm as they are stubborn and indomitable in their behavior.
On the one hand they approach the facts of life calmly, almost slowly, to the point of being able to irritate some souls more prone to agitation, but on the other, if topics particularly dear to them are touched upon, they can become hardened and stubborn, to the point of anger, especially for injustices.
Different moral alignments are widespread among them, especially inclined towards good and neutrality, many are chaotic, and fewer are lawful and evil.
Customs and Society
Most donbrays simply want to live in peace and, although they are not hostile to other peoples, they are quite isolationist, trying to limit contacts with the outside world to the minimum necessary, also for fear of running into abusers again. Despite this, they are very welcoming, and treat the guest with great respect, although they are not very tolerant of provocative and inappropriate attitudes.
The communities of the donbrays are profoundly democratic, and are managed through peer assemblies, in which everyone is invited to express their voice, and solutions to problems and conflicts are sought together. The only sort of separate "caste" is the priestly one, who is entrusted with tasks of spiritual direction and fulfillment, and tradition (although each donbray is also responsible for passing down their history).
Donbrays have a strong mobility within their workforce, so that individuals, rather than following family activities, can take their own path according to their skills and desires, thus ensuring the exchange of knowledge and maximization of productivity. They have a strong work ethic, and are very good at both manual jobs (mainly agriculture, carpentry, farming and forging) and those that require scientific skills (doctors, herbalists). They also cherish their independence and seek to exorcise the days of slavery their ancestors were forced into, and so they appreciate a relaxed approach to work, seeking to enjoy life's simple pleasures as much as they can.
Unrelated to this worldview are those donbrays who mostly choose to abandon their home and become adventurers.
Lands and Relations
Most donbrays are found on the island of Asinara, reached by their ancestors when they freed themselves from the yoke of slavery. The island is barren, but can support the life of a community very well, thanks to the fertile soil that allows the cultivation of resistant grains and fruit trees. The island is medium-sized and rocky and is not far from the coast. It usually has a hot and dry climate, but in winter the marine currents can make it very windy and cold. Their diet is mainly vegetarian, especially with dates, olives and figs, as well as wholemeal bread, milk and cheese, and occasionally fish, seafood or meat.
Although they are not a people of great navigators, as close as the island is, it requires crossing a stretch of sea to reach the mainland, so they have worked hard and opened various lines of trade for their products and their craftsmanship, procuring thus the resources that are not found on the island.
The island of Asinara does not have a real center, and instead the houses are widespread, interspersed with fields, farms and other activities. They live in close contact with nature, in simple houses, made of local stone and stuccoed to make them heatproof. Donbrays who live elsewhere are still native to the island and have usually abandoned their home either to find other opportunities, learn new trades or because they could not tolerate donbray society. Other donbrays outside the island are descendants of those groups of slaves who failed to free themselves, at least initially, and who therefore now live in other small enclaves scattered around the world, or among other races. In any case, donbrays are comfortable in multiple environments.
The donbray people are not numerous, but their history is quite well known and they are still spread almost everywhere, so they have various relationships with other people. They are at ease with dwarves, who appreciate their industriousness, with gnomes and elves who appreciate their spiritual, nature-loving and lighter and deeper side. Humans look at them with distrust, but the qualities of the donbrays don't take long to show themselves and to improve the opinion that humans have of them. The donbrays are on particularly difficult terms with all peoples who permit slavery and with slavers in particular, whom they detest with all their hearts. Relationships with the chevals are complex, because the donbrays recognize their kinship, but the chevals cannot help but look at them with a hint of superiority.
Religion and Spirituality
The donbrays have always been a deeply spiritual people, and their deities are closely tied to their history. Rather than focusing on the creationist aspect of religion, in fact (the origin of the world is a matter of nature or of others deities) they prefer the historical, community and individual relationship of the divinity.
They worship a single god, Tenas, the Weary Mother, who is said to be the great spirit who eases the sorrows of all donbrays , and assists and guides them in the difficulties of life. They pray to her for good work and harvest, for safety, for family, childbirth, birth and death. The sweetness of the Weary Mother, say the donbrays, is a cradle for all the afflicted. The myths say that the Weary Mother was a sweet donkey with a white fleece, who died protecting her little ones, after a life of hardship and toil, but for her constancy and sweetness she was exalted by the gods, who made her ascend, and now she watches over on the donbrays entrusted to her. To his clerics she grants the dominions of Good, Healing, Birth, Harvest, Endurance, Community, Animal, Plant, Protection and Repose.
Although the Weary Mother is the only true donbray deity, there is no shortage of those who, even without any confirmation, venerate the hero Ragliomaro as a demigod, or in any case as an ascended hero. Although this cult is deeply personal, and often typical of those who set out on adventures, especially to free slaves, many Donbray offer a cult, however basic, to Ragliomaro, who seems to respond by offering the clerics the domains of Strength, Hope, Herculean and Liberation.
Language and onomastics
The language typically spoken by the donbrays is Common, the only language that their life as slaves has left them, although they use their own terminology, developed by their ancestors to communicate with each other without being understood.
However, their vocabulary includes some typical Silvan expressions, as a legacy of their cheval origins. For names, the donbrays prefer to adopt above all the name of Ragliomaro, or other important figures, as well as names that recall plants, qualities or natural elements.
Typical male names: Ragliomaro, Chook-o, Chookin-o, Somar, Buttercup, Sunflower, Field, Bottom.
Female typical names: Ragliomara, Chook-a, Chookin-a, Asina, Rosegrass, Lunarita, Riva, Reddala.
Racial Traits
- +2 Constitution, -2 Intelligence or -2 Charisma: Donbrays have excellent physical stamina, but often lack wit or are overly wary.
- Humanoid (Anthro): Donbrays are asinine creatures with humanoid bodies.
- Medium: As a Medium creature, a donbray has no special bonuses or penalties due to its size.
- Donbray base land speed is 30 feet.
- Low-Light Vision: A donbray can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. She retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
- Stubborn: Donbrays are particularly stubborn and recalcitrant, so much so that they receive a +2 racial bonus against all mind-affecting effects and to resist Charisma-based checks.
- Free Spirit (Ex): Their history of slavery makes them intolerant of the control of others, so Donbray are particularly good at escaping physical restraints. They gain a +2 racial on grapple and Escape Artist checks to escape anything that tries to trap them.
- Beast of Burden: Given their history of slavery and their physical abilities, Donbrays are incredibly capable of carrying heavy loads. They add +2 to their Strength score to determine their maximum load or use their Constitution score for this purpose (whichever is more advantageous).
- Endurance (Ex): The donbray's incredible ability to withstand physical fatigue is almost legendary. They gain the feat Endurance for free.
- Staffmaster: The typical donbray weapon, handed down by the hero Ragliomaro, is the staff. Donbrays are proficient in the quarterstaff, short staff and battle pole and they gain +1 to damage when using such weapons. They also treat these weapons as if they have trip property. This trait counts as the feat Weapon Focus for the three types of staff for the purpose of requirements.
- Hooves: Donbrays have hooves and cannot wear footwear (but magical ones adapt to the shape of their paws). They can wear horseshoes as if they were horses.
- Chevalkin: Donbrays are descended from chevals and therefore they count as such for the purposes of effects and requirements that involve them.
- Automatic Languages: Common.
- Bonus Languages: Any, except secret languages.
- Favored Class: Barbarian or Druid
- Level Adjustment: +0
- Effective Character Level: 1
Racial Options
Feats
Feats from other sources:
Pathfinder Options
In Pathfinder, donbrays also gain +2 to Wisdom.
Alternate Racial Feature
- Mule's Bray: Some donbrays use their stubbornness much more actively. Donbrays with this trait gain a +2 racial bonus on Intimidate checks and for resisting intimidation, and they can attempt to demoralize all creatures that can hear them within 30 feet of them. This alternative trait replaces the Stubborn trait.
- Donkey Bite: Donbrays have heads like those of donkeys, and some of them learn to use their teeth as a weapon. They gain the Donkey Bite feat for free. This alternate trait replaces the Endurance trait.
- Workhorse: Slave donbrays and those that have endured hard work are massive in size and can transport incredible weight. They gain the Workhorse Build feat for free. This alternate trait replaces the Free Spirit trait.
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| the bluez in the dungeonv |
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| Author | the bluez in the dungeon + |
| Effective Character Level | 1 + |
| Favored Class | Barbarian + and Druid + |
| Identifier | 3.5e Race + |
| Level Adjustment | 0 + |
| Racial Ability Adjustments | +2 Constitution + and -2 Intelligence or -2 Charisma + |
| Rating | Undiscussed + |
| Size | Medium + |
| Subtype | Anthro + |
| Summary | Donbrays are a race of humanoid donkeys descended from the chevals. + |
| Title | Donbray + |
| Type | Humanoid + |
