Options for Everyone

Racial
Ability
Bonuses
Illustration by Steve Argyle

Player’s Handbook® 3 introduced a new option for

player character races. Instead of receiving a +2
bonus to two ability scores, each race was given one
constant ability bonus and a choice between two
alternatives for the second bonus. That approach has
been standard in all books published since then.
Most of the races from previous books were
updated in Heroes of the Fallen Lands TM and Heroes
of the Forgotten Kingdoms TM, leaving just a handful
untouched—until now.
This article extends the option to the remaining six
player character races. Now all characters can adopt
those racial archetypes that are thematically fitting
but which previously were less attractive choices.

Deva
For millennia, servants of the gods of good bound
themselves to mortal forms so that they could directly
battle the forces of darkness upon the world. Those
remaining in the Astral Sea watched their fellows’
progress with pride and gratitude, mixed with a
growing concern. The devas’ efforts against the
followers of evil were noble and brave, but uncoor-
dinated and often impulsive. Worse, the devas had
trouble recruiting mortal allies to fight alongside

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them. A call reverberated through the Plane Above,
summoning great leaders and evangelists to abandon
their well-earned rests and cloak themselves in flesh
once more. So it was that new devas began appearing
in the world, dedicated to bringing light against dark-
ness, gathering mortals to their righteous banners,
and guiding their hosts to victory.
Genasi
Genasi have the wild souls of elemental beings, and
their essentially supernatural nature is part of all that
they do. Just as their souls manifest elemental power
in different ways, genasi are varied beings. Almost all
have keen minds, but their bodies show the effect of
their heritage in different ways. Some are physically
powerful like a storm, while others possess a capacity
to endure like stone.
Goliath
These mountain-bred nomads forge powerful ties to
the primal world during their alpine wanderings. The
influence of their unforgiving environment is obvious
in their culture, which emphasizes honesty, boldness,
and reverence for nature. Goliaths learn from an
early age to draw strength from the mountains that
nurture them. Although most pursue the straight-
forward life of a warrior, their powerful links to the
primal world also urge them toward the paths of the
warden, the seeker, the shaman, and the druid.
Kalashtar
Those who know the kalashtar understand the con-
flict that roils beneath their serene exteriors. For a
kalashtar, every hour is a struggle against the dark
madness that lurks beyond the perimeter of sanity’s
light. But the madness that threatens also contains
Racial Ability Bonuses
secrets of the mind and of the arcane world. With warforged along with their more workmanlike fellows.
their characteristic introspection and deliberateness Examples of these late-model designs tend to be slim-
of purpose, some kalashtar probe that darkness to mer and more graceful in appearance, and often wear a
fuel their studies into magic and psionics. striking black, gold, or silver finish. They are extremely
logical, as one might expect of thinking machines, with
Shadar-kai near-perfect memory and an insatiable hunger for
The goal of many shadar-kai is to be remembered in knowledge and learning. They often pursue careers as
glory when life reaches its inevitable end. They test wizards or artificers.
their own limits and then strive to push beyond them,
Ability Score Bonuses
to achieve the only immortality that matters: being Fixed
counted among those heroes who are remembered Race Bonus Either/Or
in legend. To achieve that end, shadar-kai are willing Changeling Cha Dex/Int
to take extreme risks, to gamble everything on one Deva Wis Int/Cha
throw of the dice. Some, however, take a longer view Dragonborn Cha Str/Con
of life. They see the road to glory as a long and rugged Drow Dex Wis/Cha
slope rather than as a looming precipice. To them, the Dwarf Con Str/Wis
Eladrin Int Dex/Cha
inward-directed life of the monk and the psion hold a
Elf Dex Int/Wis
special attraction. A select few, upon tasting the rich-
Genasi Int Str/Con
ness of life beyond the Shadow­fell, lose themselves in
Githzerai Wis Dex/Int
the vibrance of the primal world. Like all shadar-kai, Gnome Int Dex/Cha
they will always be strangers to true joy, yet this sense of Goliath Str Con/Wis
wonder sets them apart from their kin. Half-Elf Con Wis/Cha
Halfling Dex Con/Cha
Warforged Half-Orc Dex Str/Con
Human any none
Most warforged designs, being intended for close
Kalashtar Cha Int/Wis
combat, emphasized physical power and durability. Minotaur Str Con/Wis
The armorers and artificers of House Cannith, how- Mul Con Str/Wis
ever, experimented with many different warforged Revenant Dex Cha/Con
patterns during the Last War, and smaller numbers of Shadar-kai Dex Int/Wis
warforged were built for very different purposes. Some Shardmind Int Wis/Cha
of the last warforged designs to emerge from the cre- Shifter
Thri-kreen
Wis
Dex
Str/Dex*
Str/Wis
ation forges were given superior mental ability in order
Tiefling Cha Con/Int
to quickly master various forms of arcane magic. House
Warforged Con Str/Int
Cannith hoped to sell these warforged battlemages Wilden Wis Dex/Con
for a premium price, but the end of the Last War put
a stop to the production of these new, more intelligent *Determined by choice of longtooth or razorclaw
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