WARRIOR-BARBARIAN KIT

Fenwalker

Description:  Though not numerous, there are Barbarian tribes who choose to 
make their dwelling within trackless fens, bogs, marshes, and swamps, loving the 
damp conditions and the unique synergy of water and earth that can be found 
there.  Fenwalkers love the solitude allowed by the undisturbed wilderness that 
marshes represent.  Civilized folk tend to avoid marshlands for fear of disease, 
quicksand, or simply getting lost in the maze of tangled underbrush and deep 
pools.  To a Fenwalker, such folk simply miss the natural beauty of the 
marshlands and the calm stillness that prevail there.  Of course, this is all well and 
good to the mind of a Fenwalker, who would just as soon not have such folk 
traipsing through their domain and who often seek to capture or kill those who 
trespass there as a warning to others not to intrude.  Fenwalker tribes tend to be 
small family units, though sometimes whole villages will be established for trade 
and mutual protection against the very real dangers of the swamp.  Such villages 
are often built on stilts or pilings driven into rare patches of solid ground or else 
made of floating houseboats lashed together into barge-towns that remain 
together for as long as necessary for trade or festivals or clan meetings, then 
breaking apart and each going their own way.  Fenwalkers are loners who enjoy 
silent meditation on the marvelous ways of nature, but woe betide those who 
come upon them unannounced or who threaten their homes and their way of life, 
because they can be very deadly enemies when their fury is aroused.

Requirements:  Fenwalkers must be of non-lawful alignment and may be humans, 
half-orcs, and half-ogres.  Fenwalkers must have at least 15 Constitution and at 
least 12 Strength, Wisdom, and Dexterity.

Weapons & Armor:  Fenwalkers can wear leather, hide, studded leather, and 
studded hide armor and can use any type of shield.  A Fenwalker's initial weapon 
proficiency slots must be spent on the following weapons:  bow (short), dart 
(war), polearm (goblin stick), sword (machete), tortoise blades, and wrist razor.

Special Benefits:  Fenwalkers gain a number of special abilities relating to their 
particular focus on introspection and meditation, plus standard Barbarian skills.

Hardiness:  As a standard Barbarian, save that a Fenwalker has double the normal 
chance to recover from a natural disease or poison with rest, time, and natural 
remedies.  Fenwalkers also reduce damage from attacks by insects, rats, and 
other vermin by 1 point per die and add a +2 bonus to saving throws vs. disease, 
poison, and parasitic infestations caused by such creatures.

Inner Focus:  Fenwalkers have the ability to concentrate and marshal their 
personal energies to provide a temporary bonus to their Strength, Dexterity, or 
Constitution scores.  A Fenwalker must concentrate for one round (during which 
time no other action can be undertaken) and then roll percentile dice.  If the 
result is less than or equal to the Fenwalker's Wisdom score plus twice his or her 
level, the Fenwalker can boost one of these ability scores, depending on his or 
her level, gaining all normal benefits for the boosted ability score at its new level:

Level	Improved Score
1-5	18 (18/00 for Strength)
6-10	19
11-15	20
16-20	21
21+	22

This boosted score persists for one round per level of the Fenwalker.  Since most 
of the character's energy is being expended in boosting that one ability score, 
however, the other two scores are reduced by two for the duration of Inner 
Focus.  Note that a Fenwalker can abandon his or her Inner Focus at any time, 
restoring all three scores to their normal levels.  Only one score can be boosted at 
any time through the use of Inner Focus.  If a Fenwalker tries to use Inner Focus 
more than once on a particular day, the chance of success is halved each time 
(e.g., 1/2 normal chance for the second attempt, 1/4 normal for the third, 1/8 for 
the fourth, etc.).

Natural Stealth:  As a standard Barbarian, but a Fenwalker's bonuses and abilities 
are doubled when in any sort of marshy terrain.  They gain their normal bonuses 
and abilities in forest or jungle terrain, but they are halved in any other 
environment (save for indoors, in cities, or underground, where they cannot be 
used at all).  A Fenwalker can also attempt a Hide in Shadows or Move Silently 
check at the normal chance of success to hide or move stealthily while swimming 
(on the surface or underwater) or while paddling a small boat or canoe.  

Fenwalkers attack by stealth regularly, and they are able to backstab as a thief of 
half their level (rounding up) in situations where they are able to surprise their 
targets.

Outdoor Craft:  As a standard Barbarian, but Fenwalkers also have the ability to 
'track' swimming creatures, boats, and other waterborne prey through swamps 
(including streams and pools that move through marshy terrain).  A Fenwalker 
can use his or her Outdoor Craft to detect natural hazards, such as quicksand and 
undermined riverbanks, as well as snares, pits, tripwires, pungi sticks, and similar 
traps, but only while outdoors.  The chance of noticing such hazards is the same 
as for detecting an ambush.  A Fenwalker can always attempt an Outdoor Craft 
check to avoid getting lost in a swamp, though if it is not their 'home swamp' the 
check is made at only half the normal chance of success.  A successful roll 
indicates that the Fenwalker has figured out the right way to go and prevented his 
or her party from getting lost when they otherwise would have (assuming they 
follow his or her directions).

Survival Skills:  As a standard Barbarian, but a Fenwalker can climb trees and 
wooden structures at his or her normal chance of success.  Any other climbing is 
done at only half the normal chance of success.  A Fenwalker's foraging skills can 
be used only in marsh, forest, and jungle terrain (or near rivers, lakes, and 
seacoasts, at the DM's option).

Tribal Stature:  As a standard Barbarian.  In addition, a Fenwalker's boosted 
Charisma for dealing with other Barbarians should also be applied when they are 
dealing with any creatures native to swamps and marshes, including animals and 
sentient monsters of all types (e.g., lizard men, bullywugs, black dragons, will-o-
wisps).  At the DM's option, a Fenwalker who achieves a friendly reaction with 
such a character can attempt to entice it into service as a henchman.

Vermin Slaying:  When battling insects, rats, spiders, snakes, lizards, and similar 
vermin creatures with fewer than one hit die, as they often must in their vermin-
riddled home terrain, Fenwalkers gain one attack per round for every level of 
experience they possess.  This bonus is also gained against humanoids that are 
smaller than man-size and have fewer than one hit die (e.g., goblins, kobolds), as 
such creatures also frequently infest the swamps where Fenwalkers make their 
homes.

When fighting larger vermin creatures (i.e., man-sized or larger or 1 hit die or 
greater), Fenwalkers do not gain extra attacks but do gain a +2 bonus to hit and 
damage.

Special Hindrances:  Fenwalkers share the hindrances of all Barbarians.  In 
addition, they are loners who dislike and distrust civilized characters even more 
than most other Barbarians.  This, combined with their often ragged and even 
nearly pestilential appearance, reeking of marsh muck and swamp gas, causes 
them to incur a -1 penalty with any sentient creature not native to swamp or 
marsh terrain, -2 with any civilized NPC, and -3 with any upper-class civilized 
NPC.  A Fenwalker will also never have more than one henchman per five levels 
(rounding down) at a time.

In general, Fenwalkers are not as warlike as other Barbarians, not gaining the 
Tribal Warfare benefit that other Barbarians enjoy.  They favor stealth as a 
method of dealing with threats from other creatures, especially civilized folk who 
trespass in their domain, attacking from surprise and then melting back into the 
swamps where their enemies cannot strike back at them.  It is almost unheard of 
for armies of Fenwalkers to mass, and their independent and introspective nature 
would probably prevent this in any event.  They also prefer to strike swiftly and 
silently and then retreat back to their lairs, leaving them uninterested in the 
Heroic Effort that other Barbarians favor.

Finally, Fenwalkers are very accustomed to their damp environment, and if 
forced to adventure in areas that are very arid they will suffer a -1 penalty to 
attack rolls, ability checks (including proficiency checks), and saving throws.

Bonus Proficiencies:  Endurance
Required Proficiencies:  Boating, Swimming
Preferred Proficiencies:  Ambush, Animal Lore, Artistic Ability, Camouflage, 
Carpentry, Chanting, Direction Sense, Distance Sense, Ecology, Fishing, 
Healing, Herbalism, Hunting, Jumping, Local History, Musical Instrument, 
Navigation, Set Snares, Survival, Tumbling, Weather Sense, Weaving