Race: Viera

A viera.

Viera are completely and unapologetically lifted from the Ivalice Alliance series. Small details have been changed to fit them better into the setting.

Viera

"We are children of the Green, and from it we shall not stray."

In ancient history, the Void created the isci, a soulless abomination crafted with the sole intent of infiltrating existence and destroying it from within. Once this invasion was discovered, Nature - always reactive - made her own guardians, borne of the trees and dwelling within the forests of the world. Only driven to action in the most dire of times, these creatures - who called themselves the viera - would work in simple harmony with nature, cultivating it and keeping true to the flows of energy in the world, and only when Nature herself is threatened would they be driven to act.

More otherworldly and fey than elemental, the viera are nevertheless a manifestation of Nature herself, crafted by her in reflection and defiance of the imitation at life that the Void had attempted. Prior to their creation and ever since, Nature has allowed all other races to follow their natural course, some evolving into sentience, others dying off through the natural cycle of extinction. The viera are inured to all of this: they do not act, save to protect the very precepts of Nature and the fabric of existence themselves. While many other peoples feel the push and pull of Nature's energies, the viera alone truly understand them, and are as receptive to them as the tides are to the moon.

Over time, the viera have changed little - but changed they have. While viera who leave their hidden forest enclaves are considered outcasts and forbidden to return, some of these so-called outcasts leave not out of wanderlust or other mortal concerns, but the tug of a new Natural energy somewhere in the world. Thus today, viera can be found wherever Natural energies are at their height, their homes well-hidden from the prying eyes of outsiders and ready to defend the Natural order above all else.

But even then, there are those who stray from the path. Some viera are not content with a life amidst the Green; Nature, in her crafting of her children, in giving them some capacity for adaptation, has also seen fit that some may not fit in with the rest of her children. While the viera are disdainful of such fleeing of their birthright, Nature is silent on the matter, and so these upstarts are allowed to go in peace, though they may not return. These viera often become adventurers, seeking something more to their existence than merely basking in Nature's glow.

Personality: Slow to anger, slow to speak, and slow to feel compassion for other races, the viera are an incredibly aloof people. Their supernatural grace and poise, as well as the caution with which they speak, is often enough to make up for their distance from the other races of Trinity, but they are slow to act, and while not cowardly, they tend to not take the initiative unless spurred on by an outside source. They are a contemplative people who do not truck with outsiders.

Those who venture beyond their enclaves and take to wandering the world are slow to change, but they do eventually adapt to the workings of the outside world. They retain their inward calm, while learning how to act at a somewhat - for them - frenetic pace when the situation demands it.

Physical Description: Tall and lithe, viera tower over most other races, but are surprisingly slender. Atop their heads are two enormous ears, similar to those of a rabbit. Their feet are incredibly long, and their legs are more akin to leaping animals than most other humanoids; viera often wear footwear akin to stilettos to allow them to walk about as though humanoid. Their skin ranges from pale to light tan, and their eyes are universally green in color. While their overall body shape is humanoid in nature, their hips suggest a more leporine construction. Viera hair varies from black to white, with a variety of shades between.

Viera are universally female. New viera are born in the trunks of trees; it is believed that new viera come into being with the ebb and flow of the Natural energies behind the world. Viera believe that, as Gaia is generally identified as female, they were made in her image.

Vital Statistics
		Starting Age			Aging Effects
	Adulthood	Simple	Moderate	Complex	Middle Age	Old	Venerable	Max Age
Age	110 years	+4d6	+6d6	+10d6	300 years	500 years	1000 years	+10d%
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
	Base Height		Height Modifier		Base Weight		Weight Modifier
Female	5' 6"		+3d8"		120 lbs.		x2d6 lbs.

Relations: Viera have as little contact as possible with the outside world, and thus rarely have opinions on those races that inhabit the worlds of Trinity. They are generally familiar with those races that favor Natural goals - elves, moogles, and the like, though generally only those native to Adnez. Similarly, they tend to be aware of those races that are Divine- or Void-aligned, and the vast majority of their kind despises these creatures actively, with not quite enough malice to visit harm upon them on sight, but close. In general, the viera are intolerant of outsiders encroaching upon their enclaves, much as they are intolerant of viera who dare leave.

Those viera who wander the worlds have varied opinions of other races, based upon their experiences, and their prejudices usually soften somewhat.

Ethos: Morally, viera are almost universally anti-Red. They lean towards anti-Blue Green beliefs, and - ironically - Black beliefs, though focused more on anti-Green than anti-White. Some variations occur, but these variations are often the cause of a given viera finding themselves wandering the worlds away from their kin.

Ethically, viera are almost universally Orange and Brown. They insist that the world take its own course and that they not interfere, unless specifically directed to by Nature itself. They often prefer to work together for the common good - in this case, "common good" referring only to the good of their enclaves - and hold tradition in very high regard. Once more, individuals who find their personal ethics conflicting with this worldview often find themselves outcasts.

Viera Lands: Viera have a number of small enclaves hidden throughout the world, most of which are in deep forests, but some in other highly-inaccessible places with high concentrations of Natural energies. These enclaves are usually rather small, and the number of viera at any given site may number only in the dozens, if even that many.

Religion: Viera are naturalists, without question. Even those viera who wander the worlds of Trinity cannot bring themselves to worship Saints or Lucavi, and they universally find nihilism - in any of its forms - repugnant. As such, viera have no pantheon of Saints.

As a people created by Nature herself, the viera do not have "souls" per se; instead, they have something rather similar, but formed of Natural energies (and, given that holy is a recognized Natural element, that "something" is almost identical, lacking only the Divine spark). When a viera dies, her soul undergoes the same reincarnation process that happens to mortal naturalists, but viera are always reincarnated as viera, and other mortals are never reincarnated as viera; indeed, a viera's soul literally cannot leave the Soulfont in any other fashion. That the viera are somewhat similar in nature to the isci is an observation best made out of earshot of a viera. Because they have something akin to a soul, it is possible for viera to rise as undead: these creatures are rightly seen as abominations by their kin, and those who learn of an undead viera will go to great ends to seek out the creature and destroy it, with some even willingly becoming outcasts to perform such a task.

Language: Viera speak Druidic, and are the only natural speakers of this language. It is from the viera that shamans and their ilk learned the secrets of this language, and it was taught to them by the viera with the strict understanding that none who did not follow the ways of Nature would be taught it. Even those viera who wander do not share the secrets of their language save with those who have earned the right; for viera, maintaining the secrecy of their language is almost a sacred charge.

Viera Culture

The following is a rough overview of some of the highlights of viera culture.

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Viera Are Responsible For...

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...three.

Viera Racial Prestige Classes

None yet.

Viera Racial Traits (t20v4)

• +2 Dex, +2 Wis, -2 Brv. Viera are nimble and wise, but have reduced personal initiative.
• Origin: Elemental.
• Size: Medium.
• Speed: 8 squares (40 feet).
• Vision: Normal, low-light.
• Born of the Wood: Viera have forest walk. (A creature with forest walk ignores difficult terrain if that terrain is the result of trees, underbrush, plants, or natural growth.)
• Inherently Natural: Viera are inherently Nature-aligned. You gain racial DI and VI equal to your character level.
• Turning Weakness: Due to their inherent Natural alignment, Viera can be turned as though they were undead.
• Soulless: Viera do not have true souls, and thus are immune to any effect that would manipulate or control their soul, as well as effects with the [death] descriptor. Viera who are slain cannot be raised or resurrected by any means short of an impossible effect.
• Mist Sensitivity: Viera are sensitive to the Natural energies that lie behind the natural world; the viera refer to these energies, as a whole, as mist. As a free action, a viera can determine the elemental alignment of an area. Viera gain a +2 race bonus to attack rolls with abilities that share an element with their environment, and suffer a -2 race penalty to attack rolls with abilities that oppose the elements of their environment.
• Mistsight: Viera can read the energies inherent to a creature. Viera have innate libra. (A creature with libra knows the current hit points, weaknesses and resistances, and Force alignment of any creature they look at within 60 feet.)
• Nature Affinity: If you ever become an elementalist, you can take one Natural feat of your choice as a bonus feat; you must meet all of the feat's prerequisites. The Evoker feat does not count as a [Job] feat for you for purposes of maximum number of [Job] feats you can have at a time.

Viera Feats

The following are a selection of feats that are relevant to viera.

 

Design Notes

I mean... are you really surprised?